Lucky Star: Between Two Friends
by Symantra
Summary: There's nothing like an awkward moment to jumpstart a relationship! Kagami finally realizes that there's actually something, or someone, she loves more than pocky.
1. Chapter 1: Subconscious Feelings

Konata leaned across the table and flicked Kagami's nose with her finger. "Hey! Are you listening, my beautiful tsundere?"

Kagami spluttered and glared at Konata. "Hey! What was that for?" Konata just covered her feline grin with her hand, knowing fully well that Kagami hated it when she was the target of that expression. Quickly moving over the other side of the table, Konata's hair floated out behind her as she came to a stop right behind Kagami and whispered into her ear.

"You were spacing out, my tsundere. Whatcha thinkin' about, Kagamiiiin?"

"Don't call me that! And it's nothing that you need to be worried about. If you have enough time to care, you should be studying more and worrying about your future." Kagami jumped at Konata's ability to move quickly and suddenly, before she grabbed Konata to try and move her back into her seat, resulting in her being halfway twisted around in her seat, grabbing at Konata's skirt. "Don't do that! And sit down, it's busy right now."

Konata smirked and noted that Kagami, while protesting, wasn't acting like she did normally. By normally, she knew that she would've been hit at least twice, three times depending on the mood. It was also abnormal for Kagami to fuss that much about her, with her typical responses to Konata's teasing being only a couple of curt, half-attentive sentences. For now, she would keep it to herself. Instead...

"K-Kagami-sama! Please.. Don't pull down my skirt here.. Everybody's watching.." Konata purposely called attention to herself by pleading dramatically in a high voice. A couple of students looked over at her, most of them losing interest after realizing it was just the one blunette who was always playing with the glacially unforgiving twintails that were Kagami Hiiragi. Patricia Martin and Hiyori Tamura walked past and shared a giggle at Konata's theatrics. Patricia gave their table a thumbs up, while Hiyori stared at the pair in effort to come up with an idea for a doujin revolving around the act.

Kagami blushed and yanked Konata back to her seat, flusteredly protesting at her incrimination. "Seriously, you idiot.. It's like you want to embarass me. Someday I'll get you back.. Soon.." A scheming smile crept onto her features as she focused her eyes on Konata, knowing the effect it had. Konata's eyes widened the slightest bit, but hid her surprise by smiling and nodding.

"You will never succeed!" She narrowed her eyes in an attempt to look stern and put her hand to her ear. "All troops, order! Attack is imminent, I want a 50% increase to our defensive measures and an extra two scouting parties at all times! I will continue the offensive, do not let me down! Dismiss!"

Tsukasa and Miyuki watched in amusement as Kagami glared at Konata and tried to scold her as she danced around the table, the pair being used to the antics of Konata Izumi and the older Hiiragi twin. They knew well enough that it was easiest to just spectate or start their own conversation, as it was sort of difficult and awkward to try and join in. When it got to this point, things usually ended up in Konata hugging Kagami, apologizing, then leaving with one last tease. Then, the conversation resumed as normal. However, something was a bit odd today.

"Ugh.. You can be so annoying sometimes, you know that?" Kagami groaned, before standing up. "Alright, it's almost time to go. I'll see you guys after school." Konata sat down again, her ahoge bouncing happily, humming and finishing up the last drops of her juice.

"Bye Kagamin! Don't think about me too much, or you won't be able to focus in class, heheh.." Kagami frowned in annoyance to Konata's words, before she started to walk away. Konata jumped up and followed, seeming to float on a cloud of overwhelming positivity.

Tsukasa giggled. "Those two really are close, huh?" She slowly started to pack her things, and stood up, waiting. Miyuki quickly finished up at the table and put her book away.

"They really are something. It's sort of refreshing, knowing that whatever happens, those two will always be here with their saccharine relationship." She walked next to Tsukasa, smiling at the thought of how Konata and Kagami seemed to get along so well. "..even though their personalities contrast so much..." The yellow ribbon bobbled as Tsukasa nodded, then tilted her head in confusion.

"Saccharine? Relationship? W-wait, Sis and Konata are.. d.. d.. dating?!" Her eyes widened and she blushed at her misinterpretation of Miyuki's words.

"N-no, that's not what I meant! Um.. Saccharine is just a word that means.. sweet, or everlasting. Like, how Konata and Kagami always make up after fighting, and go back to being best friends. They aren't romantically involved!" Miyuki flusteredly explained, gesturing panically with her hands, trying to calm her fellow airhead. Konata for sure would've given moe points for Miyuki.

A look of understanding crossed Tsukasa's face, who then smiled and thanked her pink-haired companion. Miyuki smiled in return, before tilting her head and concentrated on her thoughts. _"They aren't romantically involved.. but both of them have been acting a little strange lately. Hmm.."_

Lost in thought, she walked smack into a brown-haired boy, and hurriedly apologized then scampered back to Tsukasa, who had stopped and looked around in confusion, wondering where her friend had went.

 _"I really need to stop doing that.."_

/-/

After school, Nanako Kuroi let out a big sigh and waved uninterestedly at the class. They had less homework today, since she had come to school completely burnt out. It wasn't an uncommon occurence, because she would commonly assign a huge amount of work to her class, forgetting that she would have to spend all night grading the papers, losing out on her gaming time. Staying up all night gaming was one thing, but staying up all night working was another.

"Class dismissed... no homework today..." As delighted as they were, the students quickly filed out of the room, knowing not to push their luck with their _sensei_ in the mood that she was in right now. That is, everybody except a certain chibi otaku. Kuroi buried her head in her arms and moaned. "Ughh.. I hate everything..."

Konata watched as her teacher mumbled indecipherably and rummaged through her desks to find that bottle of sake. "Yo, sensei!" Cheerfully, Konata waved, even though she knew that Kuroi wasn't even aware she was here.

"Oi.. Izumi.. why are you still here?" Kuroi muttered something about a drink as she pulled out the bottle.

"Oh, just wanted to tell you. The guild went on a raid for the Tower of Phantasm yesterday, since we had everybody online except for you. Piyo didn't want to wait, because she-" Her teacher didn't respond, but when Konata mentioned the raid, her head snapped up and her eyes glinted as she grabbed Konata and hugged her tightly, almost sobbing.

"T-Tower of Phantasm? The raid that has a month cooldown?!" Konata stood there and looked into her eyes, not at all surprised at the pool of sadness swimming in the lime green irises. Since the newest update, the strongest guilds have been getting their players ready for the newest challenge, the Tower of Phantasm, where the strongest items in the game could be obtained. Most end-game players were looking forward to attempting a raid, but it was the most difficult in the game, requiring 48 players to enter. Kuroi had been looking forward to it since the teaser trailer, but she now had to wait another month to challenge it with the guild. _"Just wait 'till I get my hands on the raid manager... I can't believe they left me behind!"_ Konata smiled and let a sly grin creep onto her face. Kuroi glared at her, thinking she was being laughed at, but the glint in the girl's eyes and the words that came out of her mouth.

"Sorry.. I tried to convince them to wait, but they didn't listen. Everybody was getting ready to go, but I somehow managed to convince them to let me have some extra loot."

At this, Kuroi's eyes lit up. You could get basic equipment and items from towns and monsters, but the rarer loot was found in dungeons and from quests. Raid instances had a huge loot table, with incredibly powerful items dropping from the powerful enemies and bosses. "Really?! Did you get the boots from the mid-boss?" Konata nodded.

"Yep! And I got the morphing weapon too. I'll let you have the boots, since you missed the raid." Kuroi was an avid player of the MMO, maybe even more so than Konata. Even though she constantly pestered Konata about her homework, both of them were really close online, having played together for a long time.

"Ah, Konata, sometimes you're my favorite student.. hmm.. oh, here! Why don't you have a drink with me?" Konata sweatdropped and decided it would be best to make her leave now.

"Uh, as much as I'd like to, no thanks sensei.. I really shouldn't.." She quickly backed up and left the classroom, shouting her goodbye before Kuroi could push the sake into her hands.

"Are you sure? We can drink to your success!" Kuroi smiled and took a swig from the bottle. "Well.. more for me.. cheers!" Konata grabbed her bag and looked around for her friends.

"I'm only her favorite student.. when I give her free stuff. That feels sort of wrong.."

/-/

Konata quickened her pace, looking for the heads of her friends. It wasn't that hard to find them. She dashed towards the blob of pink-hair, slipping past a couple of people. _"There's a plus to being short and flat. I'd like to see Miyuki trying to do this.. hehe.."_ Konata caught up and immediately latched onto her favorite. "Kagamin! Did you miss me?"

Kagami jumped at the sudden contact, shaking her arm trying to remove whatever it was that had grabbed onto her. Seeing that it was Konata, she sighed and resigned to having the girl rub her head against her. "Konata, do you have to do that? You don't need to hug me all the time, okay?" While Kagami certainly wasn't weak, Konata was surprisingly difficult to deattach once she had a good grip on something. The best way to describe her was clingy.

"But Kagami, you know you love it when I hug you like this!" Wrapping her arms around Kagami's waist, she hummed happily as Kagami frowned in annoyance.

"Come on, get- off.. seriously.." Pushing on Konata, the otaku only tightened her grip and giggled.

"Kagamiii!"

"They're certainly a sight to see." Miyuki smiled to the other Hiiragi, once again marveling at the differences between the twins. While Kagami would flusteredly protest and attempt to push Konata away in annoyance, Tsukasa would flusteredly stutter and mumble, not trying to remove Konata, thinking that it would be mean to deny the bluenette's hug.

"Yeah.. sis and Konata are really close.. I can't help feeling embarassed and awkward when Konata does that to me." Tsukasa watched her sister struggling, smiling. Miyuki, once again, thoughtfully tilted her head. _"Just an act.. Tsukasa said it, but I don't think she realized the full implication.. Kagami puts on a facade.. does she.."_

She was startled out of her thought by Konata suddenly throwing herself into Tsukasa, dramatically sobbing and sniffling as she hugged the younger twin. "Tsukasa.. K-Kagamin doesn't want to hug me.." Kagami had somehow managed to pry the girl off of her and push her away, but Konata suddenly felt empty without someone to hug. She wrapped her arms around Tsukasa instead, knowing how the girl would act. Surprised, Tsukasa didn't know what to do, but she guessed that it would be best to comfort the ball of blue hair clinging onto her.

"A-ah.. It's okay Kona-chan.. You can hug me instead..."

Konata gave one last dramatic sob before straightening up. "Thanks Tsukasa, you're such a good friend!" But hugging Tsukasa.. It didn't give her the same feeling as when she hugged Kagami. Konata barely realized it, somewhere in the subconscious part of her mind, but she didn't think too much on it. Looking over at Kagami, she smirked and hugged Tsukasa again. "Maybe I'll just hug you from now on.. Since Kagamin doesn't like me anymore..."

Kagami muttered under her breath. "Tch.. it's better that you hug me than bother my sister." Surprising herself, she realized that the words had slipped out of her mouth without her wanting to, mentally facepalming as Konata careened into her once again.

"Oh, I knew you'd come back to me Kagami, he he he!" Kagami decided to say nothing, but kept walking as normally as she could manage with the girl's arm wrapped around her. Tsukasa breathed a sigh of relief, and Miyuki just smiled and giggled at the situation. _"I can't help feeling.. that there was another meaning to those words.. Konata seems to think that I said them because I didn't want her bothering Tsukasa, but.. Somehow I don't believe myself when I think about it..."_ Giving in, she looked away from her friends, trying to hide her embarassed face.

 _"You know.. I'm sort of getting used to having her hugging me. It feels weird when she isn't here.."_

/-/

"What took you so long anyways? Usually you're out the door as soon as the bell rings." Kagami questioned Konata on why she was the last one to join them. It wasn't really an important conversation, just small talk as they made their way to the city. The group of friends had planned to spend the day shopping and agreed to eat dinner together.

"Oh, just chatting with sensei about that MMO. You should've seen the look on her face when I told her she missed the raid!" Konata giggled and thought back to it. "She was looking forward to it for about a month, but when she heard that she had to wait another month.. I've never seen her so sad before!" Kagami frowned as she tried to recall when the last time Kuroi was sad.

"The only thing I can remember is how tired she looks when she gets back from a hangover. That doesn't really count though.." Kagami sighed and looked at Konata's head. "What disturbs me is how satisfied you look. It's like you feed off of sadness."

Miyuki, listening in on the conversation, thought back to the last time she saw their normally upbeat teacher in a gloomy mood. "Hmm.. Remember that time when Konata knocked over the bottle of sake on her desk, and spilled it all over her computer? After she yelled at Konata, she looked rather distressed." Konata stared at Miyuki, blurting out her defense.

"It wasn't my fault that she left her drink there. Normally she puts it away in one of her drawers."

Smacking Konata on the head, Kagami huffed in annoyance. "Just because she left it on the table doesn't mean you're totally free of blame for knocking it over. That was all your fault, don't try to pin the blame somewhere else." Konata dramatically whined and clutched the injured spot.

"Aww, Kagamin's so cruel.. What could I possibly do to make her forgive me?!"

Kagami for some reason felt sort of bad for hitting Konata. Maybe it wasn't entirely the small girl's fault.. Accidents happen, right? "Eh.. you could come to Gamer's with me.. a new light novel just came out, and I want to pick up a copy. You could do it for me." She feigned disinterest, hoping that Konata would believe her somewhat truthful statement.

"Ohh! That's something I would ask you to do. Maybe I'm starting to rub off on you, with all the hugging you make me do, hmm?" Konata looked at Kagami with a questioning glint in her eyes. Normally Konata would be pestering Kagami to accompany her to the manga store, but today it seemed to be the other way around. "Sure, Kagamin! I'll escort you to the store, leave it to me!" Striking a dramatic pose, she pointed in the direction of Gamer's with stars in her eyes. Sighing, Kagami grabbed her arm and pulled her along behind her.

"If you're going to be so chatty about it, I may as well leave you behind."

Tsukasa and Miyuki watched in amusement, again, as Konata struggled to upright herself in Kagami's grip. Stifling a laugh, Tsukasa turned to Miyuki. "They're sort of funny to watch.. Did you want to go shopping while they're gone? We have a couple hours until we have to meet again.." Miyuki smiled her agreement and nodded.

"I don't mind. I wanted to check out this new store..."

/-/

She picked up a small plastic box and held it up to her face. Tilting it on its side, she carefully looked at the text on the back, before shaking it ever so slightly. Konata smiled that cat-like grin and quickly walks picks up the manga she had put down and walks over to the counter, where her friend was already paying and getting ready to go.

"Mm? I thought you were only buying manga. Typically you only buy figures on the day the new ones arrive." Kagami looked at the figure in the box that Konata had picked out. _"Another one of those Haruhi characters. I know she loves the series, but she already has a ton!"_ Konata glanced at her, making her cat-like smile once again.

"Oh, this is a special one. I'll tell you later, but it's one that I don't have yet."

Collecting their new stuff, Kagami turned and looked at Konata expectantly. Seeing this, Konata took out the box and held it up for her friend to see. "I don't have this one yet because I was holding off on buying it until I could find a specially made one! Every shipment might have one or two, but sometimes there'll be none at all. If you show it to an expert, they'll tell you that it's the special figure and its value." Konata hummed happily, putting the box back into her bag. "I read up on the shipment yesterday, and they said that this was an exclusive shipment or whatever, so this figure will be worth about 20 times the value I bought it for." Kagami was pretty impressed by all this, but she didn't show it. Instead, she kept up her questioning.

"Well, how do you know it's the special one? What if you picked up a normal figure?"

"You see, there's ways to tell. Sometimes the boxes are waited, the labels are different, or the figure isn't the same as the others. This one, the text on the back was slanted by a tiny bit, and the figure isn't centered."

Kagami sighed. "You know too much about the wrong things. I've said this was impressive before, but it's strange how you memorize and notice all these little things, but you can't even remember a math formula." Konata smirked and explained.

"Well, everybody likes to focus more on their favorite things than the things they don't like doing. I like anime and manga, so I work hard at all this stuff. I wouldn't bother to learn everything about you if I wasn't planning to..." Her mouth stopped moving, and she frowned. _"That was close. What was I saying?"_

Kagami looked suspiciously at Konata. _"She was talking about me, but then she went quiet. What was she about to say?"_ This was unusual because Konata was the type of person to say whatever they want, dismissively and openly. "What were you going to say?" Konata's cat-like grin had a slightly nervous edge, and she looked away quickly.

"Oh.. I-I was just.. going off topic." She quickly glanced around and looked for something to use as an excuse. "Oh, look! I'd recognize that moe hairstyle anywhere, it's got to be Miyuki! Let's go, Kagami!" Dashing off towards the pink hair, she left Kagami behind, who followed after her and called out for the athletic bluenette to slow down.

 _"Something's up. I don't know what.. but it feels like I do..."_

/-/

"Bye Kona-chan! See you sis!"

"Later Tsukasa, Miyuki-san!"

"Goodbye Konata-san! Goodbye Kagami-san! Have a good night!"

"Bye Yuki-chan, Tsukasa! I'll take good care of Kagamin!" Konata yelled out her goodbye to the other two. Turning to Kagami, she noticed the annoyed expression on her face. "Eh..?"

"Hey, hey.. you know it's going to be me who's taking care of you, even though it's your house. After all, I'll bet that you only want my homework." Kagami rolled her eyes at Konata. She fell prey to Konata's tricks many times, so she made sure to be extra careful around her, especially when they were alone.

"Not this time, Kagami! I'm all done with my homework. I just figured it's been a while since the two of us have spent time together." Now this was surprising! Konata, done with her homework? Something was wrong..

"Hah.. I'll check it when we get there. I'll bet you scribbled down all the wrong answers." Kagami pointed a finger at Konata, a sign of her distrust in Konata's educational skills.

"Ah, Kagamin.. You underestimate me, fu fu fu.."

/-/

"My dad isn't home today, he's busy with work stuff. He said he'll be back tomorrow night, so we have all of today and tomorrow." Konata opened the door to her house and slipped her shoes off, stepping into the comfy, warm surroundings of the room. Quickly ascending the stairs, she called out to Kagami. "Why don't you wait in the living room? I'm going to change, you can come up after I'm done. Unless you want to peek, that is!"

Kagami nodded absent-mindedly, forgetting that Konata couldn't see her. Dropping her backpack against the wall, she realized she didn't bring a change of clothes. "Ah.. shoot. Guess I'm stuck in school uniform.." Kagami sighed and sat down, digging out her new light novel and starting to read. A minute later, Konata came down the stairs at running speed, and went over to the kitchen to get something to eat.

"Kagamin, are you okay with having some pocky? We have a lot of that.. Oh! And I'll grab some Calpis Soda too!"

Kagami just smiled and said her thanks, knowing that Konata would pick it out regardless. Konata knew what she liked. She walked up to the otaku's lair and walked through the open door, settling down at the table. As she returned to her book, she heard the sound of cabinets closing, drinks being opened, and then the soft pattering of feet up the stairs. A tray of snacks was set on the table, and then there was a head of blue hair blocking half her vision.

"Whatcha reading, Kagamin?" Konata asked, her voice sing-songy as she tried to get a glimpse of the book. Kagami in turn slowly pushed Konata's head away and showed her the cover.

"It's a light novel in that one series I showed you. This is the latest book. I can lend it to you, since you're pretty much caught up with me."

"Ah, thanks. I'll read it after you're done with it." Walking over to the pile of manga on her bed, she grabbed one and walked back to the table, sitting across from Kagami and sticking a pocky in her mouth. Sitting there, with her eyes lax and moving back and forth over the comic, Konata really looked.. normal. It was a strange sight, if she had to say so herself. It was so rare to see Konata in such a docile mood, with her usually being.. crazy, otaku Konata. Kagami was caught up watching her face, which was sort of fun to watch. Every once in a while, Konata's eyes would light up, her mouth would open in surprise, or she would smile, or she would frown. It was the most relaxing thing, watching her expressions change so easily. _"She's.. sort of cute, when she's not being a total otaku."_

Kagami blinked, before mentally facepalming. _"Oh, crap. Can't believe I just thought about Konata, of all people, as cute."_

 _"...I'm so confused right now."_

"Kagamin." Konata looked over to notice her friend completely lost, staring straight at her. She had almost jumped at first, but she decided to stare back and see if that elicited a reaction.

 _"Well, I guess she sort of is.. Anyone would say that.. right?"_

"Ka-ga-miiin." Konata didn't think that Kagami was the type of person to daydream. After all, she hated being tricked or being the victim of any pranks, and this was the sort of thing that led to pranks. Speaking of pranks, she had a good idea. Konata put her manga face down, stood up and walked over to her best friend.

 _"Geez. I'm falling for my best friend. And it's a girl."_

Suddenly she felt someone wrapping her arms around her waist. "Wh.. Huh?! K-Konata, what are you doing?!" Jumping at the touch, she suddenly found the book she was reading incredibly absorbing. For a moment, it was quiet. Then, a slow voice spoke directly into her ear.

"You were watching me really intently.. What do you find so interesting about me, Ka-ga-min?" As she dragged out the nickname, Konata reached up and turned Kagami's head around to face her.

Touching her chin to her chest, Konata smiled and made Kagami look directly into her emerald eyes, then looked down at her mouth. Before she could push the girl away, Konata had leaned forwards, eyes closed, and Kagami felt something being pushed between her lips.

 _"Konata.. you.. wait, this is a pocky stick!"_

Blinking in shock, poor Kagami was still in a daze. Turning her head back around, Konata then returned to hugging the confused girl.

After Kagami had realized what just happened, she silently closed her book and stared at her lap. The shock that was evident on her features gradually faded, but there was still a streak of red across her cheeks.

"Konata?" Her voice was lower than normal.

"Yes, Kagami?" Konata responded in the same tone, the same volume.

"I'm.. confused.. I don't know what to think anymore..."

Konata's eyes widened and uncharacteristacally was speechless. Kagami wasn't blushing crazily, or hitting her, or yelling at her? This was new, this was.. strange. The stunned otaku regained her composure, but as she started to stand up, Kagami grabbed her hands and kept her there. "K-Kagami.."

Sighing, Kagami marveled at how skinny Konata's arms were. "This.. feels sort of nice.. but.. I don't know if it's okay or not.." She was arguing with herself on the inside. Is it wrong to feel this way with her best friend? While she was thinking, the Konata threw all caution to the wind. She took a deep breath.

"Kagami.. You probably already know where this is going, but.. I want to say.. that.." Her voice cracked, at which point Kagami's eyes widened in surprise. She knew that Konata had realized how weird she was acting, but now Konata was acting differently. "Uhh.. I really like you Kagami. You've always been so, so forgiving. With me. Like, I always annoyed you and stuff but you always stayed my friend.. even if it took a couple days." With this, Konata stood quickly and slowly walked out of the room. _"Thanks.. Kagamin. Please.. don't leave me for this.. If you left, I'd be broken.."_

Kagami ate the pocky. Her mind was frantically trying to recompose itself, although her body already had. Sitting quietly for minutes, she eventually came to a solution. She put her book down and followed her best friend.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Oh hi oh! It's been a while! Finally got back into the mood of writing, after leaving two of my stories at dreadful hiatus. Back with a Lucky Star story! I don't really know if people still read these, but I rewatched the series and was suddenly motivated by my obsession with the characters. I do apologize if anything seems out of character or not like it should be in the canon series, but I need some plot devices and freedom with this, so review and leave me advice and stuff! Other authors are saying how they live off of reviews, but I wouldn't know, having only gotten about 5. Anyways, please enjoy!**

Sym: Hey, welcome the the chapter's end. My name is Sym, and I'm here with Konata Izumi! *throws his hands up in a dramatic gesture*

Konata: Thank you, thank you. Why am I here?

Sym: Oh, I was going to ask you about something related to the chapter.

Konata: Alright. Well, I've been having feelings about my best friend Kagamin for a while, and today I was originally going to play a prank on her, but she-

Sym: As much as I would love to hear you spoil what my imagination should be doing, that's not what we're here for today.

Konata: Ah, sorry, sorry.

Sym: So, you claimed that you were all done with your homework. But Kuroi was too tired and sad to assign any homework.

Konata: Ohh, that! Well, I noticed that Kagami was making another jab at me not doing my work, so I decided to say that I was all done, before telling her that we didn't have homework. I guess I didn't have time to finally tell her, since she sort of.. You know. Fell in love with me! *giggles and winks*

Sym: Alright, thanks for clearing that up. Time to wrap up! See you in the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2: Intimate Feelings

_"My name is Konata Izumi. I'm a crazy, self-centered otaku who loves video games and anime. I have three friends at school that I always hang out with, a teacher who's almost as crazy as me, and a dad who's even more open of a pervert than I am. I'm impossible to catch off guard, I always have something to say."_

Konata was trying to get her thoughts back into order, but she couldn't stop her biography from running through her mind. _"My best friend Kagami Hiiragi is different. She can caught me off guard, she can stun me into speechlessness. I'm in love with her, and I think she's also in love with me. At least, I want to think that. Chances are, she doesn't want to be near me anymore."_

Sitting down on the bottom step, she leaned her head against the wall. How could this girl do this to her? This one tsundere, the type she was best with in her dating sims, the one type of girl that Konata could always figure out. She managed to set Konata's emotions free, something that had only happened once before. It was exceedingly rare for Konata to be sad, to be confused, to be this happy. Yet, ever since she had met Kagami Hiiragi...

 _"It's.. weird.. but I'm sort of happy.."_

Sitting down on the bottom step, she looked at the wave of blue hair. It's crazy how this one selfish girl managed to confuse Kagami so much. She couldn't even recall a time when she had felt like this. It was sort of funny, that the key to unlocking her emotions was the unique, one-of-a-kind otaku that she had met two years ago through Tsukasa.

 _"Geez, I didn't even want to let her into my heart.. but now I don't want to let her out.."_

Kagami decided that it was time to make a move. She had grabbed a cup of the Calpis Soda in hindsight, but she set that down to the other side of her. Wrapping her arms around the petite figure, she drew her close, smiling when her head snapped around, noticing the way her hair flew around, loving the way her eyes widened in surprise, glistening and just the slightest bit joyfilled. "K-Kagamin?! I, uh.. didn't notice you there.. heh.." Kagami smirked and poked the adorable blue-haired girl in the cheek.

"Of course not.. I'm the only one who can sneak up on you, right?" Konata's mouth opened in surprise, once again. Kagami had to hold in a laugh at how good it felt to be the only one who could catch this omniscient girl off guard. "Let's just.. sit here. For a while."

So they did. For a couple of minutes, it was just Konata and Kagami, best friends sitting on the bottom step in Konata's house. Before long, Konata had hesitantly wrapped her arms around Kagami's waist, who didn't even flinch. "Kagamin?"

"Yes, Konata?" A couple minutes ago, a sly Konata had asked the same question, but now it was calm and collected Kagami.

"Umm.. I'm sorry if you're.. weirded out by me.. I mean.. your family is religious, and you probably don't support.. two girls.. And now I've gone ahead and.. well, you know.." Konata was surprised by the words coming out of her own mouth. She hadn't opened up like this in.. well.. years on top of years.

"It's fine. I've gone and thought it out.. and I figured that I want to give you a chance." Konata looked up at her, her eyes once again betraying her emotions.

"You don't.. dislike me?"

"I could never get mad at you for liking me. As much as we've fought, you've always cheered me up. You know, I notice those tiny things you do for me. Every time I get mad at you, you always end up doing at least one nice thing for me before going back to teasing." Kagami paused, smiling at the thought of those small thoughtful things that she didn't think Konata would be capable of."

Konata was doing her best to hold in her tears. Hearing this from the mouth of the person she liked so much was.. in a way, it was the hardest thing that she's ever done, trying to hold back her emotions. Not in a sad way, but in a happy way. "Kagami.."

"I want to give it a chance. I want to give.. us.. a chance." The purple-haired girl looked down at the chibi next to her, wondering at the emotion locked inside those green eyes. It's a good thing that she had managed to focus and collect her thoughts before coming down here. In a way it had been comparable to preparing to enter a boss room. _"Now I'm starting to think like Konata."_

"Is that okay.. my Konata?" Putting her hands on the blue haired girl's shoulders, she turned Konata to face her.

"I.. I'm so happy.. Kagamin!"

Blinking away tears, Konata leaned in and put her head on Kagami's shoulder. Holding her, Kagami waited for the girl to pour out all her emotions. "It's just.. I'm.. so happy that you don't hate me.. I don't know what I would do.. if you left my life.." Sniffing, she looked up at Kagami happily, her eyes shining. "I'm probably.. all out of character, huh.."

"You are. But I love both sides of you, you little otaku." Kagami leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. "I won't let anyone get in the way of this.. of our relationship."

Wrapping their arms around each other, Kagami helped the shaky girl to her feet, holding her as they slowly walked back to Konata's room.

/-/

"Hey, Kagamin." Konata, having recovered from her breakdown at the influx of emotions, looked up from her manga and into her new lover's eyes.

"Hmm?" With her defining pocky stick in her mouth, Kagami looked up and saw Konata's piercing green eyes focused on her.

"Does this make me officially your girlfriend?"

Startled by the question, she waited a second before answering. "I guess so. I hadn't thought about it that way yet, but I guess we're girlfriends now. Konata's eyes widened and her lips formed a smile.

"Yay! I finally managed to hook up with the tsundere!" Kagami just smiled.

"Does this mean you'll take me on dates now?" Konata tilted her head at the question.

"Of course. That's the next step of a relationship, right? We go on lots of dates, I constantly tell you that I love you, and you kiss me." Kagami sweatdropped at the blunt summary of what their life would be like from now on.

"Y-yeah.. you could put it that way.. Not very romantic, but I'm understanding." _"This is when you normally point out my dere side."_ Sure enough, Konata commented on the excessive polite behavior.

"Ah, my girlfriend is in her dere dere state right now.. I'm so happy!" Resting her head on her girlfriend's shoulder, Konata exclaimed her happiness to said girlfriend, who sighed and smiled at the totally predictable behavior of the cute girl within arm's reach. _"Hearing her say that so easily.. It makes me happy."_

"Hey, Kagamin." Konata didn't move her head from Kagami's shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"When are we going to tell our friends and family about this? My dad is going to love us, and our friends probably won't care. But your family.."

Kagami had been thinking the question over in her head for a while now, leaving the book in her hands unread since she had first left the room to talk to Konata. Konata's dad was no problem. If anything, he'd be overfilled with joy that Konata and Kagami were dating. She was a bit worried that the students and teachers would be disapproving of her relationship, but the younger generations were so into it themselves, she was sure that a yuri romance held no hatred in any student's heart.

The biggest worry she had was about her close ones. Tsukasa and Miyuki had been with her for a while, so she was sure that they would accept her. Misao and Ayano were a bit different, but Kagami noticed everything about those two. She was almost sure there was something brewing there. Hiyori and Patricia would love it, and Minami and Yutaka are so close, it's surprising that they haven't already fallen in love.

Her parents are the most likely to disapprove. Her father worked at a shrine, which didn't exactly shun a lesbian romance, but it wasn't exactly approved of. However, while she knew that her father was stubborn, her mother would understand and eventually her dad would give in. She could deal with her sister's teasing, and Tsukasa would most likely side with her immediately anyways.

She couldn't deal with it. The strained tension in the air that would inevitably follow the confession. Once she said it, once Konata said it, once anyone said it, there would be the awkward silence where everybody sat and stared at her, confusion and disapproval ringing in their eyes.

"It'll be alright. We'll tell them together, and if anyone has a problem with it, then we have a problem with them." Kagami stated, leaning her head back and looking at the ceiling. Really, all this thinking was tiring her out. She sighed quietly and looked at Konata, but she wasn't there. Before she could react, Konata's arms slipped around her neck again.

"Kagami, thanks." The blue-haired girl blushed at her own actions, but took a breath and continued. "You're really putting a lot of thought into this. I'm really glad that you didn't push me away."

Savoring the feeling of the thin arms embracing her, the head against her shoulder, and the blue hair that was tickling her neck, Kagami took a deep breath and relaxed her body. The girl really had a hidden potential for calming her down. "Thank you too, Konata."

/-/

"Yo, Kagamin! I made us something to eat!" Konata bounced happily into the room, setting the tray down and picking up one of two small sandwiches.

"Ah, thanks Konata." Picking up the other sandwich, Kagami absent-mindedly took a bite out of it. Sitting down, Konata picked up her manga and started to read as the two settled into a companionable silence, with the girls casting a look at the other every once in a while. When they looked up at the same time, perceptive green eyes meeting sharp purple eyes, the pair giggled and Kagami's face tinted the lightest shade of red.

"Oh, Kagamin.. you're blushing!" Konata grinned and leaned forwards, her face inches away.

"Pfft.. so are you!" Kagami lied. Not waiting for a reply, she impulsively leaned forwards and left a kiss on the girl's cheek. Sure enough, the cerulean hair and verdant eyes were now accompanied by a light pink spreading across her face. Without replying, Konata mimicked her girlfriend, leaving a kiss on both cheeks, which threw Kagami's blush into overload.

"Ka-ga-min.. aren't you supposed to be trying to make me blush?" Konata mocked as she threw her arms around her best friend turned lover.

"How am I supposed to help it when someone as cute as you is with me..?" Konata smiled and hugged her some more.

"Kagamin, it's 11:30.. did you want to go to bed, or are you going to stay up?" Konata questioned. She normally stayed up until two or three, but she was pretty sure that Kagami wasn't the type of do that.

"Oh. Let's go to bed, it's sort of late. For me, at least, I don't know about you."

"Oh, I can go an entire day without sleep. I make up for it in class." Kagami frowned and playfully bopped Konata on the head.

"That's not a good thing." Smirking, Konata hugged her girlfriend one last time before running over to her closet and picking out her pajamas.

"I'm going to go use the bathroom!" Kagami watched her bounce around the room, before she remembered not having brought any clothes.

"Wait, Konata, I don't have a change of clothes.. I didn't expect to go to your house today, so I'm still in my school uniform.."

"Oh, that's okay. You can sleep nude, I don't mind." Konata yelled out from the hallway, knowing the reaction this would get. As the flustered tsundere blushed and stuttered a protest, the bluenette poked her head back into the room. "I was joking.. unless you really want to sleep nude. I really don't mind. Just grab some pajamas from the closet if you don't want to."

Kagami sighed and stood up, going over to the closet to search through Konata's clothes for something to wear. Settling for a red t-shirt and a pair of blue shorts, she quickly slipped her uniform off to put on Konata's clothes. _"They smell like her hair..."_ Kagami frowned in annoyance, realizing that Konata, being as short as she is, had clothes around the same size. As a result, the shirt stopped at her belly button and the shorts were rather revealing. Before she could contemplate a solution to this problem, she felt a cool pair of hands slide along her bare skin, forcing a yelp out of her.

"Ooh, Kagami is choosing to be so revealing.. If you're trying to seduce me, it's definitely working." Kagami blushed and spun around, hands on her hips.

"Well, it's mainly your fault because you don't have any clothes that are for my size." Konata kept a straight face, tilting her head in question.

"But wouldn't it be creepy if I had clothes your size? That's the kind of thing that stalkers do." Kagami thoughtfully frowned. She gave up and stalked out of the room.

"Hmm.. I may have to buy some clothes for Kagami."

/-/

Returning to the room, Kagami sighed and flopped down onto the bed. _"Man, I'm sort of tired today.. I'm not sure what's to blame, either.."_ Before long she felt a soft bundle of blue hair was covering her legs. "Kagami, you must really want to sleep with me.. Coming in here and heading right for the bed, he he he!" Blinking unresponsively, she replied.

"I'm just tired. Do you have an extra futon?"

"Yeah, do you want me to get it out?"

"..."

"You can sleep in my bed. I can use the futon."

"Really? Thanks, but you don't have to-"

"It's okay! I'll go get the futon right now!" Konata jumped out of the room, still a bundle of energy even at this hour. Kagami watched as the futon was dragged into the room by the Konata, rolling out onto the floor next to the bed.

"I hope you don't fall off the bed, because you'll probably squish me if you do. As much as I would love to be crushed in your breasts.." Konata smirked as Kagami blushed and muttered under her breath.

Turning the lights off, Konata slid into the futon, uttering a good night to her tall friend. Laying up and looking at the ceiling, she cast her mind back over the night's events.

 _"This all sort of feels like a dream. It's been a while since I've let myself go, and acted like this. Normally I let the others see me as some crazy, bouncy otaku, but I'm letting Kagami see me as this much more docile me. It's strange, but letting go like this makes me feel a bit fuzzy."_

 _"I almost can't believe how dreamy this feels. I mean, Konata has a side of her I've never seen before, but now that I think about it, I guess I can sort of see it in all of her hugging and talking with me. It's strange, but this side of her makes me a feel warm inside."_ Kagami shivered. She was perfectly warm underneath the covers of Konata's bed, but she had no idea why it felt.. lacking. Suddenly, she felt the blankets shift, and suddenly something was wrapped around her arm. "Eh? K-Konata, what are you.." Before she could go any further, Konata pressed a finger to her lips and hugged her tightly around the waist.

"Oh, Ka-ga-mi.. With your personality, if I don't make the first move, then we'll never get anywhere. I'm just going to sleep with you tonight, okay? Nothing dirty." _"Yet. But I know she'll give in and cuddle with me eventually. Maybe I'll have to pretend to fall asleep."_

Surprised at the otaku's abnormally laid-back and friendly behavior, Kagami smiled in the darkness, and heaved a dramatic reluctant sigh. "Fine. I don't care."

 _"This is actually sort of pleasant, but I'm not going to tell her."_ Konata just giggled and cuddled closer, imagining the red blush lighting up the girl's face. Deciding to make another move, Konata's green eyes lit up with a certain sort of determination. She crawled up and sneakily pressed her lips to Kagami's, holding it for a second before resuming her cuddle, humming jubilantly. Her mouth left open in shock, Kagami touched her hand to her lips. _"She just.. kissed me.. That actually felt- pretty nice."_ If they could be seen, Kagami was sure that she was glowing. Putting her hands on Konata's cheeks, she kissed her back, holding the kiss even longer this time. She felt the petite girl melting, felt her hands sliding up from her waist and stopping around her shoulders. Breaking away from the kiss, Kagami smiled at Konata's face, sure that she was blushing. "K-Kagami.. I.."

"Shh. I want to say it. Konata. I'm in love with you." Kissing her again on the lips, Kagami gently pulled her head to her shoulder, and felt her steady heartbeat matching hers. Konata just smiled happily and let her face be buried in the given shoulder, let herself relax and settled against Kagami's body.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Hey, shorter chapter this time. Sorry if the half-size turns you off, but I felt like stopping it here would be a good idea. Show some support by leaving reviews, following, favoriting, PMing, everything motivates me to keep writing. Not saying I'll stop, but if you have something to say, go ahead and say it! Anyways, on with le show!**

Sym: Hey, welcome back to the chapter's end. Today, we're here again with Konata Izumi accompanied by her girlfriend Kagami Hiiragi! *throws his hands up again*

Kagami: Again?

Konata: Oh, yeah, last chapter it was just me here. Don't worry, I saved my body for you, Kagamin~

Kagami: Tch.. stop that..

Sym: Alright.. So, how do you two feel about your emotions? I noticed that you were both rather out of character today, with Konata being a bit more shy and Kagami being a bit more gentle. Do you know why? What do you feel about it?

Konata: Ah, it was weird letting Kagami see my shy side, but I'm sure that she loves me even more now!

Kagami: H-huh?! W-well, I guess so.. I think that both sides of you are adorable..

Konata: Oh, Kagamin, trying to hit on me even when we're in public..

Kagami: Hey! Come on! *playfully pinches Konata's cheeks*

Konata: Ow!

Kagami: Sorry.

Sym: I guess we'll leave you two lovebirds to it. See you all in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3: Freedom of Emotions

Kagami's eyes slowly opened. For some reason, it wasn't as bright today. Glancing over at the window, she saw that it was draped in a sheer curtain, filtering in only dim rays of light. She inhaled and stretched her arms above her head, exhaling contently. _"I haven't slept that well in a while."_ Looking down at her side, she saw why. Konata's was sleeping against her side, arms wrapped around her waist, leaving a waterfall of blue hair sprawled across the bed.

"W-wha?!" For a horrified second, Kagami was shocked into speechlessness. What did they.. Did they really..? Konata stirred and mumbled indistinctly, causing memories of last night to fall into place in Kagami's mind. "O-oh yeah.. We're lovers now.. I guess I should get used to waking up to this." Kagami smiled gently and ran her fingers through Konata's hair. _"It's so soft.. but I never see her brush her hair."_

Not wanting to disturb her friend, Kagami just lay there, calmly stroking the hair of her girlfriend as if petting her. She had realized her feelings for the small girl before her. Was she a lesbian now? She never really felt any strong sort of attachment to other girls, but she wasn't really interested in boys either. It seems like the blue-haired, green-eyed girl in her arms was the only one that Kagami cared for, in that way. Kagami closed her eyes and sighed, then opening them with a smile. _"If you could hear my thoughts right now, I'd never hear the end of it."_ "Hey. Konata. Wake up."

Feeling a gentle shake, Konata curled up into a ball, hugging her _pillow_ tighter. Sighing in annoyance, she rolled onto her back and stretched her arms over her head. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she looked up at the blurry purple thing that was calling her name. "Mmm.. uhh.. Kagamin? Why are you.." Blinking sleepily, Konata tried to cure her drowsiness by focusing on her friend's face. Was Kagami smiling? At her? She must still be dreaming.

Chuckling at her friend's half-asleep actions, Kagami cupped the tiny girl's cheeks and touched her lips to Konata's. "Hey, wake up.. We don't have all day to roll around in bed!" _"Konata is rubbing off on me. I can't believe I'm not blushing right now."_ Konata's eyes snapped open as she felt Kagami kissing her, and she gazed into the purple eyes curiously, opening her mouth to speak.

"Whoa. Not a dream.. Uhh, morning Kagami!" _"I must be rubbing off on her. She didn't even flinch."_

/-/

"...Yeah. I slept over at Konata's.. Mm hmm.. Oh, want to join us? Konata wanted me to ask you, so I guess that works out. 'Kay. See you soon!" Kagami hung up the phone. "Hey, Konata. Tsukasa and Miyuki will be joining us today, that's okay right?" Konata glanced up from the breakfast dishes she was making.

"Yeah, that's fine. As long as they don't want to come home with me too, heh heh." Konata smirked and directed her stare at the girl sitting in the room. The pair of accusing eyes along with the implied meaning of Konata's words annoyed Kagami, who blushed and protested.

"As if. They probably don't see anything in you at all!" Konata clutched at her heart, throwing her free hand up into the air, crying out with a hitched voice.

"Oh, Kagamin, I'm hurt! My feelings have been crushed hours after they've been realized!"

"Oh, shut up. You're going to drop something."

/-/

"...and I told her, have you tried freezing them? When I said that, she just looked at me like I was a genius!" Konata finished her story with her trademarked cat-like smile. Tsukasa and Miyuki were an excellent audience, nodding politely and only commenting at pauses in the story. At least, Miyuki did. Tsukasa just sat there and listened curiously.

"I have tried freezing pocky sticks myself. I think the best thing to compare it to would be ice cream." Miyuki commented. Tsukasa's eyes lit up.

"I want to try that! Maybe I can come up with a dessert idea using frozen pocky sticks.." Tsukasa frowned thoughtfully as gears turned inside her head. Konata pitched in with her idea.

"Maybe just stick them into your ice cream."

"If they taste like ice cream, what's the point of putting them in your ice cream, idiot?" Kagami sighed, mentally facepalming at what didn't seem like a worthwhile idea.

/-/

"Ah, but Kagamin, the beauty of this dish lies in the idea, not purely the taste!" Konata argued her point as the four friends boarded the train headed towards the city. "Whatever.. wait, why are we still on this conversation?! We ended it at lunch!"

Konata and Kagami stepped into the train side by side, heading towards the back where there was enough space for four people. Miyuki gestured for the two to take the seat, Tsukasa coming to a stop right next to her.

Kagami watched the scenery fly past the window. The train ride would last for about 20 minutes, good for catching a quick nap. Sneaking a glance at the girl beside her, she watched her fingers dancing along the screen of the hand-held, expertly manuevering the stylus as she pulled off whatever action she wanted to do. It was hard to keep track of those deft, agile digits, but she was still amazed at how skilled Konata was at gaming. _"We haven't really held hands yet.. years of gaming must have had an effect on hers in some way.. I want to hold them, just to feel them.."_

Konata knew Kagami was watching her. She didn't exactly see the tsundere's eyes on her, but more like she felt the purple gaze. In a couple of seconds, she had taken an idea from her mind, specialized it for this situation, and played it out in her head. Scrunching up her face, she faked a yawn and slowly put her game away. She closed her eyes, swaying gently before resting her head on the arm of the girl next to her, placing her hand on top of Kagami's as she did.

Kagami looked down at her, a light blush creeping down onto her face. _"She's really cute when she's sleeping."_ Kagami tenderly wrapped her hand around Konata's and squeezed it lightly, an unusually gentle gesture Konata knew was proof of her plan's success. Smiling to herself, she let her body relax and mind drift off as she allowed her purple-haired friend to watch over her.

"Konata. Konata, wake up. We're here." Her consciousness reformed as Konata slowly woke up as a result from the gentle voice that was drifting down to her. Blinking her eyes sleepily, the first thing she saw was the hand of the lilac-haired girl in front of her. Taking the hand in her own, she felt herself being lifted out of her seat, barely managing to maintain her footing as she was thrust alongside her friend.

"Mmm.. sorry, I must've fallen asleep.. heh heh.." She didn't actually plan on falling asleep, but her girlfriend was really soft, and it sort of just happened.

"That's okay. Just hurry up, we're waiting for you."

Pushing past the people shuffling off the train, Kagami pulled Konata through and to where the rest of their friends were waiting. Smiling, the group started their day out.

/-/

"I got it!" Konata let her friends know as she jubilantly bounced back to their table and passed out the drinks. "Man, the lady there was new or something, because I asked her for the pocky drink and she looked at me like I was crazy. I had to argue with her until she called over one of the regular workers, and sold me the drinks! I told him how annoying the lady was, and how busy I was, and he even gave me a free choco cornet!" Finishing her tale, she triumphantly sat down and picked up her complimentary chocolate. "It was annoying but worth it, he he!" Kagami sighed, while Tsukasa looked on in confusion.

"It must have been a bit frustrating dealing with a new employee, but I can't help but think that you took advantage of them." Miyuki commented. Konata just flashed her wily feline expression, claiming that it was fine. Having given up on the argument already, Kagami took a sip of the so-called pocky drink.

"Whoa, this actually does taste like pocky! How did I not know about this?" Kagami was a bit surprised, since she had the impression that attempts at creating a drink from popular food items usually ended up in some strange tasting mush. "TIL!" Konata stated in English, gaining another confused stare from Tsukasa. "It means today I learned," repeating it in English and Japanese, fully knowing that Tsukasa still wouldn't understand. Smiling to herself, she took a bite out of her chocolate cornet. "Now we just need a drink made out of chocolate cornet, and I can just drink my lunch every day!"

Kagami looked at the bunch of blue hair next to her, gently poking her to get her attention. She wanted to tell Tsukasa and Miyuki right now, while it was just the four of them. Unfortunately, Konata didn't get the hint and dramatically shied away. "Wha, Kagamin! Not here, it would scar the minds of our innocent companions!" Subjected to a glare and a much harder prod in the ribs, Konata just smirked. _"Ah, you idiot. Whatever. I'll do it myself if I have to."_

"Tsukasa, Miyuki. Konata and I.. have something to tell you." Following this, she looked at Konata, watching the realization dawn in her eyes. Tilting her head, the girl with the green eyes spoke.

"Why don't we show them instead?" The two _innocent companions_ watched the back and forth, one thinking about the implications and possible confessions, the other just watching with a blank look on her face.

Eventually, Kagami just sighed and looked at her two unknowing friends, her face flushed pink. "Well.. Konata and I trust you, so we're hoping that you don't fail us now.. Will you be our friends, no matter what happens?" Nodding, the pink-haired girl smiled slightly, knowing what was to come. Tsukasa agreed, still not knowing what was going on between the two.

As she watched her older sister pull her quirky friend in for a kiss, her eyes widened, her jaw went slack. So _this_ is what they had been hiding from them! After moments, the two pulled apart, breathing, and Kagami looked back at her friends, observing their facial expressions. Tsukasa was still trying to wrap her mind around _when, why, what just happened?_ while Miyuki was sitting there, smiling as always, looking on as if she had known from the start.

"Konata and I are dating. If you, couldn't tell." Keeping her face neutral, she watched the pair sitting across from them. She hadn't realized how strained she was, worrying that they would be pushed away once they came out with it. Knowing how she felt, Konata put her arms around the taller girl, leaning on her, letting her know that she was there for her.

After a moment, Miyuki broke the silence. "You don't have to worry. I, err, sort of saw this coming. I personally have no vendetta against lesbians, and I actually think it's romantic!" The moe meganneko put extra emphasis into her smile, seeing Kagami's worry and discomfort begin to fade away. Looking at Tsukasa, Miyuki gently nudged her, snapping her from her daze and signalling her to respond. As Tsukasa looked at Konata, at her big sister, she blurted out the first thing that came to mind: "You two are really cute together!"

Konata blushed almost as much as Kagami, but did her best to give her signature grin nonetheless.

As they walked, Kagami was bombarded with questions by mostly by her sister, but a couple from Miyuki.  
"Are you two girlfriends now?"  
"When did you start dating?"  
"When are you planning to tell your family members?"  
Answering each question in turn, Kagami then felt the otaku squeeze her hand. Turning to the girl who hadn't said anything since the big reveal, Konata's eyes showed an affinity of determination and patience. Kagami knew that Konata would wait as long as it took. Smiling at the display of confidence from her girlfriend, she answered Miyuki's question.

"I want to tell my family.." Taking a deep breath, she made a commitment she would carry out, to prove her responsibility and equal love for the annoying yet caring girl that had ensnared her heart. "Tonight."

Konata smile grew. Tsukasa and Miyuki walked closer to the two, uttering their vows to support and help to their fullest extent.

/-/

"Mom, we're home!" Kagami, Tsukasa, and a certain other entered the Hiiragi family's house. Konata was feeling a tad bit nervous, which was an emotion that she very rarely felt. After all, this was the biggest hurdle in their relationship; convincing Kagami's family to accept their love. Would everything work out fine, or would the plan fall apart?

Kagami hadn't been making a rash decision when she decided to confess that night. Today her father was working out at the shrine, so the only people in the house were her mother, along with Matsuri and Inori, her other sisters. This was the best chance, since everybody in the family openly joked, and knew, that her father was the one who was more narrow-minded and stubborn. She was almost positive that her mom would accept her, and getting these three on her side first would greatly help in convincing her father.

"Oh, welcome back Kagami, Tsukasa. I'm making something to eat right now, why don't you two sit down at the table for now?" Kagami motioned at Konata to introduce herself. Recalling what she had been told to say, she followed Kagami and Tsukasa into the living room, but walked into the kitchen where Miki Hiiragi was cooking.

"Hello Mrs. Hiiragi, I'm Konata. I'm friends with Tsukasa and Kagami." Miki looked up at the newcomer, recognizing the name from countless conversations between the twins, taking in the cerulean knee-length hair and shining verdant eyes. _"Oh, Konata looks just like I imagined. Kagami was right in calling her unique."_

"Oh, don't worry about all that missus stuff, just call me Miki." With an encouraging smile, she gestured towards the living room. "Any friend of my daughters is a friend of mine! Have a seat, I'll be done in a couple minutes."

Konata obliged, sitting down next to Kagami. "Your mom is really nice. I can see why you wanted to tell her first." She added the last bit in a lowered voice, but even Kagami didn't know that Miki's acute sense of selected hearing had just kicked in. _"Hmm? Tell me what?"_

"Yeah.. My mom is really helpful. She's always there for us, and she's always polite and understanding." Kagami looked at her best friend, then at her younger sister. Before she could say anything, Konata interrupted quickly.

"You were about to say something along the lines of _unlike you two useless girls_ , right?" She finished with a smirk, watching the surprised look turn into one of protest. "N-no, I wasn't going to say that. And I hope you realize you pretty much called my sister useless." Kagami aimed a wicked smile at Konata, then leaned in to whisper into her ear. "That'll come back to bite you later."

Konata just grinned nonchalantly, whispering back, "Only if it's you biting me, Kagamin~" Giggling as she turned the table, she happily watched how the hunter turned prey flushed red and looked away.

"Alright, what do you have to tell me girls?" Miki bluntly stated, quietly coming out of the kitchen and setting the table with bowls of rice and other assorted things. Pleased at the obvious surprise on their faces, she smiled innocently. "Itadakimasu!" she uttered, watching them expectantly. Repeating after her, the girls exchanged glances and started to eat, making small talk. Miki just nodded and hummed in agreement, waiting for them to get to the point. Konata, aware of Miki's patient dismissal of all the awkward chatting, held Kagami's hand under the table. Kagami put down her chopsticks and took a deep breath.

Before she could say anything, Tsukasa cut in. "Mom, how did you know?"

"Oh, I'm your mom. I know when my daughters and their friends have something to tell me."

The situation made Miki want to giggle, but she painstakingly held a straight face and looked at her daughter, hoping her eyes would have that patronizing look that mothers should have. _"I wonder if I'm doing it right. I'm honestly not sure if I'm having the right effect."_

Sure enough, Kagami was starting to get unnerved by the uncharacteristic calm and all-seeing act her mom was putting up. _"Alright, Kagami. Out with it."_ For the fourth time in a day, she took a deep breath and willed her voice to work.

"So.. That friend I talk about sometimes..?" Kagami stalled for time and tried to ease the conversation in the right direction.

"Mm hmm. She sounds like a very polite girl. You should bring her by sometime!" Miki smiled innocently, nodding for Kagami to continue.

"Well, this is that friend.. my girlfriend.. Konata." The three girls held their breath, all watching Miki to try and decipher her thoughts.

If Miki was surprised, she didn't show it. She let the silence drag on for as long as she could, slowly looking between the nervous Konata and the even more so Kagami. _"Good thing I've been practicing my poker face!"_

Every second that passed by, Kagami felt her heart sinking deeper into her chest. She barely felt Konata squeeze her hand. Tsukasa just looked frantically between the three other occupants in the room, wondering why it was so quiet. Before long, Miki couldn't help but let a smile onto her face, noting the heavily relieved sighs coming from her daughter and her girlfriend.

"Hehe, I'm sorry.. I couldn't help but play along with it. I may sound a bit mean, but the nervous looks you girls had were so funny!" Laughing, she smiled even wider at Konata. "Take care of my second youngest daughter, Konata. I don't have a problem with your relationship otherwise. She may be stubborn, but I'm sure you two will get along beautifully."

Konata did her best to wipe her face of any nervousness and smiled back. "I'll give her everything she deserves, Miki. Thank you!" Tsukasa giggled as she thought about how nervous they were.

"We were really nervous, huh? I was almost scared when nobody was talking."

"Ah, what's up with this?" A voice sounded during the laughter. Matsuri stepped out into the living room, followed by Inori who walked out and waved at the girls and her mom with a little smile.

"Oh, Matsuri, Inori.. Come join us, Kagami has something to say. It may surprise you, but hear her out." Miki walked over and put her hands on the shoulders of the eldest and second eldest of her daughters to sit down. Whispering into their ears, she smiled and picked up the bowls and moved to the kitchen to give them some space.

For a second, nobody spoke. Inori looked at her sisters, then at the new girl with blue-hair. She smiled, getting a nervous smile back. Matsuri looked directly at the bluenette and then back at Kagami. "So, what's up?" Konata cleared her throat, making sure she had everybody's attention, before continuing.

"I'm Konata Izumi, and I'm dating Kagami." She blurted out bluntly. She closed her mouth and waited for a reply. Matsuri and Inori looked at each other, surprise imminent in their expressions, before Matsuri frowned. "Kagami.." Pausing, she gave it a second before continuing.

"I can't believe it! You and this girl are dating, and I haven't even met her before today? I'm hurt!" Matsuri smirked before looking at Tsukasa. "Even you didn't tell me? Man, it's like you guys don't trust me, haha!" Inori interrupted as Matsuri was laughing, smiling and giving her thoughts.

"I don't mind that you're dating a girl, Kagami, but why haven't we met? Not saying I'm mad, but we barely know Konata. The only things we know about her are how annoying you say she is, and now she's your girlfriend.." Inori smiled, thinking about how ironic it was. The girl that her sister claimed to hate just happened to be her love interest?

"Yeah, sorry, but we didn't even know it ourselves until recently." Kagami apologized, with Konata nodding her agreement.

"Mm hmm! Kagami didn't realize how much she loved me until I tipped her off.. hehe," Konata joked, getting a smile out of Matsuri.

"Yep, Kagami can be pretty dense. What did you have to do to finally get her to notice?" Konata smirked and hugged her girlfriend.

"I had to hug her every day for years, and then I had to feed her some pocky. After triggering that flag, she opened up to me!"

"So, you're going to tell dad, right?" Inori's serious question put a stopper on the friendly chatter between the Hiiragis and their guest, all eyes turning to her. "You should tell him tonight. We're all going to be here, and all of us are on your side. I know that we're shrine maidens and it might be wrong if we support a lesbian relationship, but we're making an exception since you two care for each other so much. I'm sure dad would think the same, after we manage to convince him."

"Yeah.. I want to tell him tonight. No point in dragging it out any longer. I'd just get even more worried than I already am." Kagami stated, wanting to finish the confessions once and for all.

"Are you planning on staying? If you're nervous, you and Konata can go up to your room or step outside while we talk.." Tsukasa offered, not completely sure of how her sister felt about being present in the room.

"I'll stay here. I would feel bad leaving you all to clear this up, so Konata and I will stay.. Is that okay?" Kagami asked, saying the question out loud but looking directly at Konata, as if the question was for her and her alone.

"Whatever you want to do, Kagami, I'll be by your side! We'll get through this together." Kagami's eyes glowed with happiness, as Konata's shined with determination. Surely, they would overcome any problem!

* * *

The girl in question let her body go limp, feeling the pent-up tension leave her body. "Kagami.. we did it, it's done!" She leaned into the hug, a fulfilling spark igniting in her body as the warm arms pulled her into the embrace. After what felt like an eternity, Konata almost whimpered as she was released and held at arms distance. Looking into the relieved, tear-filled eyes of the beautiful tsundere before her, she blinked away the tears hoping she would get another hug, but her partner had something else in mind.

Keeping Konata at arms distance, Kagami put her hand under the otaku's chin and tilted her head back, then moved in for a passionate, loving kiss to signify the official start of their relationship. Konata melted from blissful shock that turned quickly into joy. As they blushed as much as the other, the only thing stopping a huge grin from taking over Konata's face was Kagami's tongue in her mouth. _"You know, letting Kagami be the dominant one is getting me places. Maybe I should let her take over more often.."_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Yo! I'm trying my best to stay in character, and to make longer chapters. It's hard. Leave a review or PM me with comments, criticism, questions, I'm running out of things to say. See you soon!**

Sym: Hey, welcome to the chapter's end! Today we have Kagami and Miki here today to answer some questions!

Miki: Hello, glad to be here!

Kagami: Hey.

Sym: So, Miki.. You had were on quite a roll keeping the girls nervous and the tension up. Do you consider yourself regularly a trickster?

Miki: Well, I don't do it often, but when I have a good opportunity to have some fun, I take it. I feel a little bad teasing Tsukasa or Inori, and Matsuri is too.. tough. Kagami is the perfect target, because she acts strong but she has a sweet side too! *giggles and smiles at Kagami*

Kagami: Really? That's what Konata thinks. She feels bad taking advantage of Tsukasa and Miyuki, but apparently it's PERFECTLY fine to tease me. Seriously.. Everybody is against me here..

Miki: *hastily* No, no, I'm sure she doesn't think about it like that.. I believe that Konata does it because she likes to focus her attention on you. After all, wouldn't you be a bit jealous if she hugged Tsukasa and asked her to do stuff all the time, every day?

Kagami: She knows that if she bothered Tsukasa, she'd hear it from me. But.. I guess you're right.. It sort of is nice that she's always focused on me..

Miki: Oh my, years of physical contact have turned you dependent on it.. Don't get too carried away, Kagamin! *giggles at the nickname*

Kagami: Don't call me that! Only Konata can call me that.. Sorry.

Sym: We'll be ending this here, before jealousy can cause any technical interference. Have a good night, everybody! See you in the next chapter!

Kagami: Hey!

Miki: Good bye, everybody! Come again soon! You know, if people were to ask us questions in their reviews and PMs, we could have a question and answer session on this show, huh?

Sym: You may be right! Let's hope they get the hint and start sending in some questions!


	4. Chapter 4: All Alone

Kagami woke up alone. She groaned, trying to stretch her body out by curling herself into a ball, then she rolled onto her back and worked on opening her eyes. With a disheartened moan, she remembered that Konata had gone home late last night. _"Oh god, I'm going to get addicted to being near that brat. I need to least be able to stay independent."_ It was probably a good thing; If Konata had been caught sleeping with her, it could've gotten sort of.. yeah.

Closing her eyes, she didn't move from the bed. Instead, she let her mind roam back to the events of last night.

Flashback

 _Note: Going clockwise, Miki is sitting at the head of the table, with Inori and Matsuri to her left, Tadao at the other head of the table, and then Konata, Kagami, and Tsukasa to his left._

"My name is Tadao Hiiragi. Go ahead and call me Tadao. Any friends of my daughters is a friend of mine!" Konata smiled, trying to evaluate the features and personality of the man of the Hiiragi family.

"Thank you, it was nice of you to allow me to stay for dinner! If I can ever help out sometime, just ask. I usually have a lot of time on my hands, so it's not a problem for me!" She figured it would be better to start with small talk and work their way up to it. _"After all, what would he think if I just walked up to him and told him I was dating his daughter? The possible outcomes of that route make me cringe.."_

"Oh, we don't get a lot of guests. It's actually a new experience for us to have one of Kagami's friends here! You're welcome anytime!" Miki put out, putting light emphasis on two specific words, which wasn't hard to tell. Kagami just cracked a nervous smile, quickly turning her face back into that mask of indifference that she always put on when talking about the _annoyance_ that was Konata.

"Well, she's totally different when she's with her friends. Right now, she's so polite that it's like she isn't even the same person."

"Oh, I wouldn't call it that.. I like to think of it as Konata just opens up more when she's with us! She's a good person!" Tsukasa pitched in, feeling that she should defend her friend. It sounded like Kagami was being harsh on her, but then she realized that the entire table was throwing amused glances in her direction. "Oh.. I-it was a joke, huh..?" Gaining several nods and smiles, she sighed and wished she could hide. _"This always happens.. I can't tell if its a joke or not.."_

And thus, the conversation continued at the Hiiragi table, with Konata realizing how pleasant it actually was to be around the parents and older sisters of her best friends. _"In all honesty, I was almost hoping for Tadao to do something that would give me reasons to dislike him, but he's just so god damn nice! I can't hate someone for being nice! Well, there's still a chance that.. I shouldn't jump to conclusions. I'll just wait."_

Matsuri took the lead, and told some jokes in an attempt to kindle the general feeling of joviality that was in the air. "So, Konata, I remembered something that Kagami used to say about you, on the rare occasion that she talked to me. It was along the lines of "Don't argue with Konata, or she'll drag you down to her level and beat you with experience." Kagami frowned, making sure to tell herself to be annoyed so that she wouldn't feel guilty. She actually did say that once.. Before she fell in love with Konata, she had made numerous other statements like that.

"Ah," Konata intercepted while the first round of laughter faded away. "Judging from my experience being near Kagami, I think that was actually a compliment. Kagami is admitting that I'm good at what I do, right?" To prove her explanation, she gave Kagami her trademarked smile, a devious twinkle in her eyes. The target of that unrelenting feline smile Kagami looked the other way, unable to avoid a light blush from tainting her tough facade.

"Tch. You wish. All it means is that you're so desperate you can turn anything into a compliment." Kagami's annoyance was almost sincere. _"She's turning what I say against me, and the worst part is that it's working.. Ugh!"_

Eventually, Miki called the attention to herself, waiting for silence before continuing. "Kagami? Is there something you have to tell us, dear?" Kagami felt her breath catch in her throat. It was time. What would this friendly family and friends meal turn into? A warzone? An interrogation? She relaxed her breathing, relaxed her body, let her shoulders relax. _"Alright, Kagami, don't fall apart. This is the most important event, everything else was just a warmup."_

She wiped her mouth and stood up, Konata doing the same and surprising everyone by grabbing Kagami's arm and hugging her. For a seconds, Kagami was scared to speak, an uncommon occurence, before encouraging smiles from Inori and Miki caught her gaze.

"Umm.. I would like to tell everybody that.. As of yesterday, Konata and I are.. dating." Her heart pounded in her chest, trying to look around at everybody, only managing to make eye contact with Tsukasa and Matsuri. She wanted to watch her father to gauge his reaction, but she was scared to meet his eyes. Scared or not, eye contact was the key to presentation, so she forced herself to look in his direction, almost breathing a sigh of relief at the stone mask that was her father. _"At least he's not freaking out.. he isn't the type to explode so easily."_

"You two are dating?" Tadao asked quietly, which sent a shiver of fear into Konata. _"Oh god, whenever someone asks a question that quietly, it usually means they're about to blow up.."_

"Yes. We've been friends for years, but we want to take it farther. During a study session, I realized how I felt about her, and she told me that it was mutual. So.. With your permission.." Kagami left it at that. Konata decided to wrap her arms around Kagami's waist, which brought a smile to Miki's face. _"They really are good for each other.. I think Konata will help Kagami a lot."_

"I'm glad you two told me the truth like this, but.." Tadao spoke, looking at Kagami and Konata, but his voice trailed off and he put his head in his hands and looked at the center of the table. "A lesbian relationship.. We work at a shrine.. is it really okay?" He had an innate passive ability to hide his feelings ever since he was young, so only his wife was aware of the internal conflict that was waging in his mind.

He wanted to accept his daughter. He wanted to accept Konata as her girlfriend. He wanted to do something to show his family that he would be there to support them for anything, everything. These fatherly sentiments fought against his knowledge, his religion. It was considered morally incorrect. They would face a lot of hardship, not from the normal battles in life, but from other battles. It wasn't supported in their religion, but.. then again.. it wasn't shot down either. He looked up, his normally lax eyes sparking with a passion.

"Konata." He stood up, his voice confident, as if the beat of a drum. However, he noticed how the girl almost cowered at his voice, probably mistaking the tone of finality for anger. His face softened, and he spoke quieter.

Walking around the table to Konata, he looked into her eyes. "Take good care of my daughter. As long as you love her and take care of her, and she feels the same way, I want you two to be together." WIth that, he smiled gratefully and embraced Konata. Realizing that she had been accepted, Konata's eyes were wavering, almost in tears, but full of pride. Whispering something into the otaku's ear, he straightened up and looked at Kagami.

"I want you to love and cherish this girl, Konata. Love isn't something to throw away, for silly arguments or even if you see something that you think is more important. I'm glad my daughter has found love, even if it was in an unconventional place." He went silent, watching his daughter, and then he felt his face forming a happy smile as she walked forwards and hugged him, burying her face in his chest.

"Thanks, daddy.. I'll take good care of her." Mr. Hiiragi just wrapped his arms around his daughter, gently stroking her hair. Kagami held back tears, not wanting to cry in front of everybody. Konata, however, sniffled and blinked as if trying to will away the tears of joy welling in her eyes. After Tadao separated from his daughter, Konata felt a hand under her chin, then hands wiping away her tears.

"Konata.." A gentle voice drifted to her, and Konata was suddenly wrapped in an embrace. Everybody watched with a smile as the two hugged like nothing else mattered. They hugged, just soaking in each other's presence, not wanting it to end.

"Kagamin.." Kagami tried to keep her heart from melting at the quiet, whispered word that was overbrimming with emotion.

"How about a kiss?" Before she could think about it, Tsukasa had blurted out her thoughts. Blushing, she looked down at her lap, wanting to be invisible. Again. Miki just smiled at her daughter, before watching as Konata leaned up and pressed her lips to Kagami's, who returned the kiss easily. Tadao had to smile. _"I guess I made the right choice. As long as my daughter is happy, as long as I have my family, I don't need religion to bind us. I want them to find happiness, no matter the source."_

End Flashback

Kagami smiled at the thought. They were officially in a relationship! Her parents and her close friends now knew and approved! Ecstasy overtook her and she sprung out of bed. _"Just thinking about it makes my heart race. Am I turning into a romantic?"_ The question made her smile. _"I wouldn't mind if I was."_

/-/

"Hey, Kagamin, is this it?" Konata held up a light novel for Kagami to see.

"Hmm? Oh, that's the one I was looking for. Thanks Konata." She took the light novel and smiled. That was all she needed so she began walking towards the cashier. But something caught her eye.. She turned, frowning as she picked something up before continuing to walk down the aisle.

"Ha ha ha! This is my best operation yet.." Looking extremely out of place, Meito Anizawa slammed his hands down onto the desk and pulled his red visor down over his eyes. "Once she sees the special figures, Legendary Girl A will have no choice but to purchase one! Or two! Maybe all of them!" His eyes burned with a confidence found in no other, ready to finally claim his victory of finally getting a hit! _"It has been a good run, Legendary Girl A.. But today, I have finally won!"_

Kagami's eyes flashed, gears in her mind turning. Quickly she strode to the counter and laid out her purchases. Konata, or Legendary Girl A as she was dubbed by the workers of Animate, followed and stood next to her. Kagami gave the cashier her sweetest smile. "Excuse me, but **what is this?!** " Her voice changed, her eyes burned with annoyance and she emanated an aura of danger.

Meito's eyes widened, his breath caught. _"Shit.. This is dangerous. I need to choose my words carefully."_ He looked down at the figure Kagami was holding in front of her. "That is a specially made figure, a one in a lifetime shipment. Would you like to buy one?" Wrong. He staggered backwards as the girl with twintails leaned forwards and slapped him as hard as she could.

" **Why the hell do you have a figure of my friend? Are you fucking stalking her or something?!** " Putting his hand to his cheek, he cowered at the anger on the girl's face. "N-no, nothing like that! It's just a shipment, I d-didn't have anything to do with it! Please, take what you want, my most sincere apologies!" Meito sighed in relief and distress as she spun around, stalking out of the store, leaving the figure and light novel on the counter. Konata looked apologetically at Meito.

"Sorry, guy. Kagami is scary when she's mad, huh?" Smiling, she placed appropriate payment on the desk. "Here. This should cover two figures and the light novel. Thanks!"

Grabbing her purchases, Konata quickly scribbled something down on a note, before putting it inside the light novel and running out of the store to catch up with her girlfriend. After confirming the departure of the two girls, the employees of Animate dashed over and helped Meito to his feet. He shakily looked up at them, nodding his thanks, and tiredly slumped against the wall. "She.. she bought the figures.. T-two.. Everything will be.. alright..!"

/-/

Konata caught up with Kagami and pulled her into a side hug, not breaking her walking pace. "Kagami?" She said one word, hoping it would be enough to cue a conversation. Sure enough, the purple-haired girl looked down at her, the anger in her eyes fading into sorrow. Looking at the concern swimming in those green eyes, she immediately felt bad for snapping.

"Konata, I'm sorry.. I just saw the figure of you, and I thought they were stalking you or something.. Did I scare you?" Konata just smiled and looked forward.

"No. I'm glad you're so protective of me. I guess it is sort of weird that they have a figure of me though.. I am a regular there, but I guess I'm more famous than I thought!" Kagami smiled at the self-proclaimed star. Then, she frowned in annoyance.

"Damn.. I left my light novel there.. I guess I'll go pick it up some other time." Konata just smiled and handed her a shopping bag.

"Don't worry, I got you."

/-/

Kagami sighed as she laid down on the bed. After a couple minutes of doing nothing, she flipped herself over and leaned over the edge of the bed to get the light novel from her bag. Straining to reach the bag without having to get out of bed, she snagged the handle of the shopping bag with a sound of satisfaction and pulled out the novel from inside. _"Hey, there's a note here."_ Pulling the slip of paper out of the cover, she read it and quickly looked for the bag again.

 _"Kagami, I bought this thing for you! Try not to stare at it too much! =3"_

Kagami reached into the bag and grabbed the object out. _"I knew she wasn't talking about the book!"_ Looking at the thing in her hand, she smiled and placed it on her nightstand. _"It'll be embarassing if I'm caught with this, but Konata really is thoughtful.."_ Sneaking another glance at the figure of her girlfriend, a blush colored her cheeks.

 _"Oh. I'm staring. Whoops."_

/-/

Konata closed the door to her house. "Hey dad, I'm home!" Sojiro smiled as his daughter walked into the living room, then into the kitchen to look through the fridge for a drink. "Man, it's pretty hot outside. At least it's cooler in here." She grabbed a juice box, and taking a sip, walked through the living room.

"Hey, I went to Animate and look what I got!" With her feline grin, she offered the object to her dad. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped in surprise as Konata took the figure back, smiling sweetly, and walked up to her room to find a spot for it.

"A figure? Of my daughter?" Unlike Kagami, he wasn't angry. He was a bit disturbed at why such a thing existed, but still.. _"A lovely figure of my lovely daughter!"_ He had to have one! "Uhh, Konata? You said Animate, right?"

His heart was crushed when his beautiful daughter replied. "Oh, sorry dad! Kagami and I bought the last two figures! Anyways, I wouldn't trust you to have a figure of me. It's creepy."

Head hung in despair, he wondered why the world worked against him. _"So it's creepy if I have a figure of her, but it isn't creepy if her girlfriend does?"_

/-/

An irrepressible shiver ran down Tsukasa's spine. _"I do not want to go back there, no way!"_ With a shake of her head, she declined. "Oh well, that's okay Tsukasa. It's not very fun if you get lost in the crowd! That's alright." Konata smiled in an understanding way, before turning to Miyuki with an querying expression.

Miyuki also declined, having studied Comiket after hearing about it from Konata. "I think I'll pass. I'm afraid I'd just be a burden, I'm not as good as you when it comes to navigating the crowds and using shortcuts and such." Konata, a devious gleam in her eyes, sidled up to Miyuki and pointed to her chest.

"Ah, that's okay. It's still difficult for me to get around, I would like to see you trying to explore Comiket with these things!" Konata grinned slyly and poked the side of Miyuki's breast, who promptly turned the color of her hair. "Although, I guess you could cosplay.. if you dressed up for Hiyori, I'd bet her sales would skyrocket!"

Kagami, disdain evident in her gaze, showed her disapproval of Konata's intention. "Konata, don't drag her into your otaku things. She's not even interested in Comiket, and she's definitely not going to go there as a cosplayer just to help sell things for one of your other otaku buddies. I can imagine what kind of attention you'd get as a cosplayer in that place.. ugh." At the thought of all those eyes roaming her body, Kagami suppressed a shudder. For all she knew, everybody at Comiket was at least Konata's level or worse.

Konata, being Konata, seized upon the chance to tease the tsundere, poking Miyuki one last time before switching her attention to Kagami. "Kagamin, are you jealous because Miyuki would be more popular as a cosplayer?" Smirking, Konata hugged her and nuzzled into her side before she could respond. "Don't worry, as perfect as Yuki-chan's body is, I would choose you over her! Sorry, Yuki-chan." Shooting an apologetic glance in Miyuki's direction, Konata looked up at her target with the cat-like smile she favored. Kagami, flustered at the reconstruction of her thoughts, attempted to wedge Konata away from her, a blush creeping onto her face.

"N-no, that isn't what I was thinking! Get off me, you annoying little shrimp." As mad as she tried to seem, she secretly enjoyed the affection from her girlfriend, even though she was in otaku mode.

"Nuh uh, I know Kagamin loves me! If I let go, she'll start to feel lonely and sad, I have to stay strong for her!" Konata then released her friend from the vice grip, noting the predicted disappointed note in the purple eyes. "You never said if you wanted to come with me to Comiket." Wanting to clear away the hesitation in Kagami's decision, she tiptoed so that she could whisper into the tsundere's ear, a seductive hint in her voice.

"It'll just be you and me, all alone for three days!"

/-/

 _"All alone for three days.. All alone with Konata.."_ Kagami stared intently at the ceiling, rephrasing what Konata had said earlier. _"Gah! However I say it, I can't imagine it without.. that coming to mind..! Yeesh.. I'm starting to think like her."_ Kagami ran through her mental checklist for what she needed to bring. She had her clothes, her money, her cell phone, and snacks. That's all she would need, right? Kagami glanced at the clock. (6:18 AM) She would head over to Konata a half hour early, so that made 72 minutes before she had to meet up for the train ride. Sighing wistfully, she snuck a peek at her "girlfriend," smiling at the nearly realistic figuroid of her girlfriend. 72 more minutes until she could **actually** be with her again.

Walking up the step, she knocked on the door. Waiting patiently, Kagami frowned as no answer came from the Izumi household. Knocking again, she listened carefully for any voices or shuffling. _"Konata has to be home."_ Hearing nothing, she opened the door, calling out to get a response. "Konata? Are you here?" Getting no response, her eyes flashed with annoyance. _"You have about 30 minutes.. what are you doing?"_ Putting her suitcase down to the side, she ascended the stairs, knocking on the door to the otaku's lair, before gingerly opening it and stepping inside. "Konata.."

But she wasn't there. Konata wasn't sleeping or gaming, and she didn't respond to her calls. Was she out of the house? Did something happen to her? Possible scenarios flashed through her mind, from Konata getting stuck in a crowd.. or lost.. or kidnapped.. or she got into an accident.. Kagami shook her head, trying to focus on something else. _"Comiket means a lot to her. She wouldn't go and miss the first day, and she sure as hell wouldn't let something stop her. Right?"_ Kagami reclined on the bed, wondering where her girlfriend could have possibly gone.

After what seemed like hours, Kagami looked at the clock for the hundredth time. They had ten minutes before the train arrived. What the hell was Konata doing? Where the hell was she? Man, she always made an effort to come early, the least Konata could do was make an effort to come on reasonable time. _"I swear, Konata's timing is going to be the end of me!"_ Her hope and excitement for the trip was starting to dwindle. She would grab her stuff, walk home, tell them that Konata wasn't there. She would see Konata later that day and hear whatever explanation she came up with, then-

Someone grabbed her hand. "Hurry, Kagami, or we'll miss the train!" The otaku pulled Kagami to her feet, pulling her out the door.

"Hey, wait! I need to get my suitcase!" Kagami protested. How fair was it that the one who was thirty minutes early gets rushed out the door? Grabbing her things, she followed Konata, who once again grabbed her hand and headed towards the train station.

After reaching the station, Kagami checked her phone. They had made it, with two minutes to spare. Closing the phone, she then turned to the blue-haired girl, frustration obvious from her stance and eyes. "So." Konata looked at her innocently.

"So?"

"What were you doing? You almost missed the train, for Comiket no less. Did something happen?" Kagami persisted, sharpening her gaze and pointing her finger. There was a nervous tinge in Konata's laugh.

"Oh, I wanted to-"

"Just what? I get there thirty minutes early like I always do, and you for whatever reason almost end up late! I even went to your house! I really don't underst- huh?" Konata had dug through her bag while Kagami was talking and silently handed something to Kagami. Guilt rang in her eyes and her voice as she realized why Konata was late. She had gone to the bakery, and..

"You got this.." Konata nodded. "For me.." Kagami finished weakly. Wow, she felt bad. Konata goes out of her way to get to the bakery early and get her something to eat on the train ride, but the only thing she did for the angelic girl standing before her was yell and wait. _"Dammit.. I feel like a total jerk.."_

Wordlessly, Kagami reached out for Konata, pulling her into her chest. Her eyes wavered as rested her cheek against the smooth blue hair, whispering her sorrows and regrets away. Konata just smiled happily, holding Kagami and looking into her eyes, speaking quietly. "Kagami, I'm sorry I made you worry. You don't have to apologize.. It's what in here that matters." Konata lifted her hand, placing it gently over Kagami's heart. Kagami couldn't help but laughing, pulling the bluenette in for another hug.

"Konata, you're such a romantic. If I hadn't known you for years, I would have a totally different impression of you right now."

Konata's eyes twinkled as she pulled her companion towards the open doors of the train. Heading straight for the seat in the back, she switched gears back into otaku mode. "Well, if you didn't know me this well, you might think that I staged the entire thing just to see your _dere_ side again. And the bonus was I got to touch your breast!" She smirked deviously, flexing her fingers suggestively. Konata saw how Kagami's eyes changed, instantly reverting to _tsun_ attitude.

"You did all of that? Just so you could touch my breasts? Geez, Konata, sometimes I wonder why I even bothered dating you in the first place." The tsundere let her hand slip away from Konata's, crossing her arms and tried to look fed up.

Konata pouted, latching onto Kagami again, and looked up at her with pleading eyes. "Aww, I'm sorry Kagamin.. If you let me keep hugging you, you can have your way with me tonight.." Konata layered her voice with seduction while maintaining an innocent, almost meek expression. _"She'll blush, protest, and then give in and let me hug her."_

Konata smiled to herself, watching as Kagami blushed, protested, and then gave up and looked away. _"She's predictable."_

Kagami said nothing, instead choosing to grab her girlfriend and pull her down into the back seat, sitting the slim girl halfway onto her lap. With a grin, she slid her hands behind the curtain of blue hair and rested their foreheads together. "Tonight.. _Anything_ I want?"

At the words coming from the normally passive tsundere, Konata could barely hold herself back. _"No, I need to look in control of the situation!"_ Feeling an excited shiver run through her body, Konata teasingly leaned in, then moved to the side to leave a kiss on the cheek. "Sure. Anything you can do, my Kagamin.." Letting her voice slowly trail away, she looked into those purple eyes, getting closer but making sure not to touch. At the very last moment, she stopped for a moment, then quickly drew back giggling. Kagami couldn't help but feel disappointed.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Surprisingly, this chapter turned out longer than I thought it'd be. I didn't have a lot of time today, so all that I really did was go and clean up all my chapters. As a result, I've updated the first three chapters (and this one) and now dialogue is organized much better! Back with a new chapter soon, leave reviews and stuff! Cheer me on! ^o^**

Sym: Hey everybody, welcome back to the chapter's end! Today we have Kagami Hiiragi with us on the show!

Kagami: Hello! Is it just me today?

Sym: I'm afraid so. Are you lonely?

Kagami: Uhh, no.. *blushes lightly, thinking of how Konata had likened her to a bunny*

Sym: But Konata related you to a bunny, saying that you get lonely when you're by yourself! Is that not true?

Kagami: I wish I could say that nothing she says is true, but.. I get lonely. Sometimes.

Sym: Don't worry. I'm sure you'll get plenty of time with her tomorrow! *wink wink nudge nudge*

Kagami: H-hey! I don't need you talking about what I do with my girlfriend.. *glares*

Sym: Ahaha, sorry, sorry. Unfortunately, we still don't have any questions, so that'll be it! See you next chapter!

Send us questions! And reviews! You'll either get a reply or featured on the next Chapter's End!


	5. Chapter 5: Cherished Memories

"Kagamin! I'm hooooooome!" Konata closed the door to the hotel room. "I brought food so you would be happy to see me!"

Kagami closed her book, a challenging twinkle in her eyes. "I'm always happy to see you, idiot. You make it sound like you bribed me into this relationship with food." Konata looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

"Isn't that what I did?" Konata said, but Kagami stared at her in confusion. "I triggered the flag by feeding you! I dunno how I didn't think of that before, because if I had known the path to your heart lay in your appetite, I would've done it a long time ago."

"Hey, hey.. you're stretching it. The flag would've been triggered anyways, you just gave it the push with that pocky stick. And don't talk like an otaku when discussing our relationship."

"Kagami, can you repeat what you said about triggering the flag?"

"Ugh.. I **said** that you would've triggered the-" Kagami finally noticed her error, and suddenly she felt like swearing. Konata watched with a smirk as the tsundere, glowing with embarassment, hung her head. "Oh crap, I'm starting to talk like you. Before I know it, I'm going to be a full-on otaku with no motivation towards anything."

Konata bore a pretend frown at the harsh summary of her personality. "Kagamin, you know that there's a lot of things that motivate me! Anime, video games, manga, my girlfriend.." At this, she hugged her saddened lover around the waist. "Plus, you're already on the road to being an otaku! You can't deny it, you're starting to watch anime and read manga and talk like me!"

"That's what scares me. The only way to retain my purity would be to break up with you." Kagami sensed an opportunity to tease her girlfriend, so she used her best serious face. As the otaku gripped her tighter, Kagami noticed her girlfriend's eyes waver. _"Oh.. if she takes me too seriously, she'll be hurt emotionally.. I should fix this for now.."_

"Y-you're joking.. right? I'm too cute to break up with, and you love me a lot and stuff.." Almost desperately, Konata was unconsciously hugging her girlfriend tighter and tighter, hoping it wasn't true. Kagami said it so casually, she was afraid that her feelings for her best friend were going to turn out to be one-sided once again.

Kagami placed a hand on Konata's head, gently running her fingers through the wave of oceanic blue hair. "Konata, it was a joke. I'm sorry. You're too cute to break up with, and I love you a lot." Kagami spoke softly, comforting the fragile girl in her arms. She felt a sigh of relief leave Konata's body, and immediately felt bad for instilling fear into her best friend. "Why don't you use the bathroom? I'll join you soon.."

As Konata gave her one last hug and a kiss on the cheek, Kagami smiled and watched as she once again bounced around the room. As the characteristic blue hair disappeared, she got up. _"If I make moves on her, she'll be pleasantly surprised. This is the best time to advance our relationship, when it's just the two of us for a couple of days."_

"Alright.. We should get out now." Kagami rinsed all of the shampoo out of her hair, doing the same for Konata. "You know, I've never seen you brushing your hair. But it's so smooth anyways, I guess you wouldn't really need to.."

"Oh, I tried brushing it once. I think I missed most of it, so I just considered it a waste of 20 minutes." Konata pointed out. Kagami could imagine how tedious it would be to have to brush all of this long blue hair.

"You're lucky that it naturally smoothens out. Imagine having to brush this daily.. You'd waste a lot of time every day!"

/-/

"Geez, Konata, put some clothes on!" Kagami blushed, looking away from the naked girl on the bed.

"Aw, but we just showered together! What makes this different?" Konata pouted, not seeing a reason behind Kagami's bashful look.

"If that's how you think, would you sleep naked with Tsukasa, Miyuki, Kuroi-sensei, and your cousin Yui?" Konata could almost feel her girlfriend's pointed gaze on her. Ouch.

"Ohh, is my Kagamin jealous?" She jumped out of bed, pressing her body against hers in a tight hug. "Don't worry, you're the only one I've sleeped with, besides Yutaka and my dad."

Kagami frowned. _"I hope her dad has some sort of moral code when it comes to his daughter."_

"Kagamin, my dad would never do anything weird to me. The most touchy feely he ever gets is when he's hugging me and stuff. He knows where the line is!" Konata flashed her feline grin.

Kagami smiled deviously, an expression she seemed to have picked up after meeting the love of her life. "Alright then.. That makes me the first one." She scooped Konata up into a bridal carry, gently laying the small figure onto the bed.

"F-first one for what..?" Konata stuttered momentarily, before regaining her composure. _"Man, I knew that Kagami was becoming more aggressive, but am I going to lose my virginity.. tonight..?"_ Kagami said nothing, but the bluenette saw the spark of desire in those lavender eyes.

"Remember what you said on the train? Tonight, I get to do _what, ever, I, want_!" Kagami stressed, grinning decisively. Konata blushed lightly. The hungry pair of eyes roaming her body made Konata want to curl up under the covers. _"Wait, I had always thought that the roles would be reversed.. at least for the first time.."_

Kagami climbed into the bed on her hands and feet, hovering directly above Konata's slim figure. Konata, her green eyes wide with surprise, decided to try one last time..

"Ah, my Kagamin is going to violate me! So early in our relationship! Could I have possibly turned her into a nymphomaniac?!" Konata dramatically cried out, watching for a reaction. However, Kagami's grin just grew wider as she waited for the outburst to stop. She suddenly dropped, putting her lips oh-so-close to Konata's ear.

"Don't try to tell me you don't want this.. I know you too well, Ko-na-ta.." Konata couldn't help but shiver with anticipation at the words, feeling a warm feeling spread through her body. _"Tonight.. I didn't expect Kagami to be the one to start.."_

"I.. I'm yours, Kagami." Konata sensed that no escape from what was about to happen, whispering quietly to her lover. "But, you're taking my first time, so.. be gentle.. please."

"I'll be gentle, but we're going to have some fun tonight."

 **-The Next Morning-**

Konata awoke to a gentle voice and a hand in her hair. "...forever, Konata.."

She slowly opened her eyes, recognizing the voice and shining purple eyes looking back at her. "Mm.. what was that, Kagamin..?" Kagami grinned and kissed the half-asleep girl.

"Nothing. Did you sleep well?"

"I actually feel rested for once!" Konata stretched. Slowly swinging her legs out of bed, she remembered why. "Oh.. yeah.."

"You were really cute last night, Konata!" Kagami teased.

"W-well, I'm surprised at how aggressive you were! I didn't know you were the type to go for complete dominance over her lover." Konata's heavy blush complimented the playful manner in her eyes. "Wow, I'm a mess right now.. You really used me well, hmm Kagamin? I'm going to go tidy up and put on some clothes before someone sees us."

"Okay, I'll change too."

/-/

Konata's eyes skimmed over the selection. Her analytical eyes settled on a stack of doujin, picking one up and flipping through it. "Mm.. This one.. is good. I'll take it, Hiyori!"

"Oh, good! That's my newest one, I was hoping you would like it." Hiyori smiled, giving her thanks to her senior otaku and upperclassman. "You know, there's some rumor going around about you. Apparently there's an increase in sales for any store that you buy something from."

Konata looked around at the previously empty stall. Now, there were two other people checking out Hiyori's doujin. "Are you sure it isn't just coincidence? I mean, there's two people."

"It's still an increase! I mean, there's more people here right now than before you came here." Hiyori said excitedly. She could see herself selling out of doujin this year! Of course, Konata bought something every year, but she hadn't actually sold out yet.

"Mm.. maybe if we had Miyuki here.. If you applied the _Konata Effect_ with the _Miyuki Effect_ , you would be able to sell more of your doujin.." Konata wondered. Maybe she could convince Miyuki to cosplay for Hiyori at the next Comiket. Before Hiyori could respond, her idol was suddenly snatched away by that one tsundere.

"Konata! I'm already done with my list! Let's just finish up, you can talk with Hiyori later, I want to get out of this place!" Kagami waved at a speechless Hiyori, before continuing to scold her girlfriend, who sweatdropped as she was pulled away.

"W-wait, Kagami- bye Hiyori!- how're you already done?! It takes me at least another hour to finish my rounds, you have to tell me how you.." Frantically searching for her notebook, Hiyori watched as they walked away, already forming an idea in her mind.

"Great, that's amazing.. Gotta get all this down.. This is going to be the best one all week!" Squealing with excitement, she flipped through tons of drawings and notes, stopping and scribbling down everything that came to mind on the first blank page.

/-/

Miki suddenly had a great idea. "Hey, Tadao?"

"What is it, Miki?" He responded out of courtesy, even though he knew that his wife would keep talking anyway.

"We should invite Izumi-san over so we can get to know him! After all, we barely know anything about the father of the girl dating our daughter!" Her eyes were lit up with pride over coming up with the idea. They should've introduced themselves earlier, but it had completely slipped their minds with the whole lesbian issue.

"Well, Konata said that he shares her personality, hair color, and interests.. But you're right, we should invite him over. It'll be nice to get to know him." Tadao got up and headed for the phone. "Should I call him? I have his phone number saved, we can have him come over for dinner."

"Yeah, let's invite him! I'll start cooking right now." Miki smiled, heading towards the kitchen. _"I wonder if he's like Konata."_

/-/

"Kagamin, how did you get everything so fast?" Konata was rather confident in her ability in tackling Comiket. In all honesty, she was stunned that Kagami had casually topped her best tactics.

"Oh.. I made a few shortcuts that weren't on the map. Let me show you." Kagami took Konata's map and list out of her bag, showing the curious otaku how she had perfected the plan. "Right here and here are little sidepaths that most people bypass. And if you take the escalator here, even if it takes you about 10 minutes, you'll end up saving nearly half an hour since you can get around the crowd by going through a stall around here."

Konata stared at Kagami, an admiring gleam in her green eyes. "Whoa, Kagami, you're good at this! You should come with me to Comiket from now on.. I could use someone of your caliber in my squad!" With a theatric thumbs up and a twinkle in her eye, Konata assumed her Comiket role of squad leader. Kagami just smirked, then cupped her hands Konata's ear, her words barely audible.

"You know what needs to happen if you want me to join you next time." Straightening up, Kagami tweaked the _squad leader's_ ear, acting as if nothing had happened. "Alright, alright, let's go. We don't have all day to stand around talking about how cool I am." With an uncharacteristic shade of pink on her cheeks, Konata moved a little closer to Kagami, putting an arm on her waist.

"You can have me anytime, Kagami. You can even tear my clothes off right now if you want to!" Konata said with a devious tone in her voice. She teasingly grabbed her shirt and lifted it the tiniest bit.

"No, Konata, stop that! Tch, you can't do that in public, especially not here!"

/-/

Sojiro was about to knock again, but he froze when the door opened. "Hello, you must be Izumi-san. Konata's father?" Sojiro noticed her shoulder-length plum hair. "Come in, come in! Dinner is about ready." Realizing he was still standing there, his hand raised like an idiot, he recollected himself and smiled, giving her a polite thank you as he stepped inside and took off his shoes.

Walking through the Hiiragi family house, he wondered how he had ever been forced out of his own house by these people. Thinking back, the guy who called him, Tadao, was rather supportive of the idea. Then again, what kind of father would he be to avoid meeting the parents of his daughter's girlfriend? Suppressing a sigh, he noticed a man with brown hair sitting at the table.

Tadao rose to meet their guest, holding out his hand. "Hello! I'm glad you could come here on such short notice." Sojiro took the offered hand, noticing the firm grip of his fellow _man of the house_.

"No problem. I'm usually home anyways, so it's no bother to me. Thank you for inviting me over! I was hoping to get to know you two more, but I didn't have your contact information." Sojiro released the handshake, then motioned to Miki and Tadao respectively, confirming their names. "Miki and Tadao Hiiragi, right? You two are the parents of Kagami, the girl who's dating my daughter?"

"Yes, that's us! We have four daughters. From oldest to youngest, their names are Tsukasa, Kagami, Matsuri, and Inori. Matsuri and Inori are in college, and Tsukasa and Kagami are in the same grade as Konata." Miki smiled, obvious pride in her voice. Sojiro was impressed.

"Four daughters, huh.. It must be hard to keep them all happy." With a smile, he looked at the Hiiragis with admiration in his eyes. "They're lucky to have great parents to take care of them."

"Haha, we try our best.. But you know with girls, they get moody. Once, all three of the girls were in a bad mood, and dinner was extremely uncomfortable." Miki thought back, almost shivering at the thought.

"What do you mean all three? Is one of them exempt from that?" Sojiro wondered, curious on why one girl seemed to be excluded from the count.

"Oh, that would be Tsukasa. In all my life, she's never gotten angry, only sad, happy, confused, and embarassed. She's also sort of absent-minded at times. Her sisters and friends at school lovingly refer to her as an airhead!"

"Yeah. When it comes to describing our daughters, it's hard to believe that they're sisters. Tsukasa is the gentle one, Kagami is stubborn but caring," Sojiro instantly connected her with _tsundere_. ".. Matsuri is laid-back and blunt, and Inori is the one who makes sure they're not at each others' throats. We have the most entertaining family time, if you couldn't tell already!"

Sojiro listened patiently, trying to remember everything about his fellow adults and their family. Before long, he was immersed in the friendly atmosphere of the Hiiragi house. _"This is totally different than when I'm at home with Konata and Yutaka.."_

"Sojiro?" Tadao's voice startled him out of his thoughts.

"A-ah, sorry. Spaced out for a second. What's up?" Sojiro was met with an understanding nod.

"Oh, we wanted to know more about you. Are you married?"

"Married.. You could say that. My wife, Kanata, passed away shortly after my daughter was born." Sojiro answered solemnly, his voice somber. "I've decided that I don't want to get another romantic relationship. In a way, it feels like I'm betraying her memory, and it's just.. wrong to do what I did with her, with another woman." Miki and Tadao listened in silence, taking in the muted sorrow in the man's voice.

"Are you sure she would want you to do this? To forbid yourself from loving someone romantically, just for her?" Tadao asked. It was a common scenario that the death of either husband or wife left the other one with feelings of guilt. Not even limited to husband and wife, it could be two close friends or siblings. They felt as if they were replacing their lost one, and it stopped them from being happy.

"Well.. it's not just for her. The day before she passed away, I was sitting at her hospital bed. She took my hand and told me to be happy, no matter what happened. I told her I couldn't. I loathed the idea of dating someone besides her. We were friends since childhood, and she meant more to me than anybody else. She knew how I felt, and she accepted me for who I was, and I did everything I could to show her I loved her. Once she was gone, I had no motivation to get another woman. It's.. emotionally impossible, for me. Even if she wants me to, I feel sick when I think about it."

Taking a deep breath, Sojiro stilled his voice. Met with encouraging smiles, he continued.

"Ever since Kanata left this world, it's just been me and my daughter. Directly after my wife passed away, I was trapped in grief.."

Flashback

Sojiro sat silently, his head bowed. Standing, he slowly turned and walked away. As he did so, he remembered.

Her grip was weak. He could sense that she was barely hanging on, and she knew it too. As she squeezed his hand with all the energy left in her, his heart nearly broke at how frail she was. "Kanata.."

"Sou-kun, don't cry.. You have to promise me." The voice he had known for years on top of years, was now so quiet and meager.

"Promise? Promise you what? I'll do anything.. just tell me what you want me to do, Kanata!" Sojiro pleaded, desperately hoping. Hoping for a miracle. Hoping for something that would give him more time with the woman he loved so much.

"T..two things." Kanata closed her eyes, her chest moving up and down gently. "Our daughter.. Konata.. You named her after me, right?" She smiled lovingly, and he nodded his head. "I want you.. to love her as much as you loved me.. But not in the same way you loved me, okay?" She joked, managing another feeble smile. Sojiro just smiled back.

"I'll take care of her. I won't love her as a wife, but as a daughter. I'd do anything for you two.. you know that!"

"Good. I want you to take care of her.. Raise her well. I'm-" Her voice caught, the tragedy finally catching up as she held back her emotions. "I wish I could be there.. to help. But.. you have to carry on in my absence." Two small tears rolled down Kanata's cheek, and Sojiro wiped them away gently.

"I will. I will! I'll raise her with everything in my being!" Sojiro promised. He would take care of the product of their love, his daughter who already bore a stunning resemblance to the love of his life.

"And I want you to be happy." Sojiro froze. He knew what was about to come next.. He saw it coming, but he couldn't see how he would make it happen. "You need to.. move on. I know you love me, you would do anything, so do this for me. Find someone, marry her, give Konata a new mother. Can you do that for me, Sou-kun?" Kanata raised her hand, placing it on her husband's cheek. But he shook his head, holding her hand with both of his own.

"No. I can't.. If I ever got into a relationship.. with someone else.. I couldn't. You're the only one for me Kanata, you know that! I don't think that these feelings will change.. I'd be happier living single than I would be with someone else." He spoke vehemently. Kanata just sighed, but didn't argue.

"I love you Sou-kun, but I just want you to be happy.. Is it really impossible? For you to.. find someone else?" She was ready to accept it. Sojiro's love for her had been deep and unmovable. She wasn't at all surprised that he would reject the idea of remarriage so strongly.

"It is. But I promise.. I'll be happy. For you. I'll do whatever I can to make my daughter.. and myself.. happy." He felt his breath catch in his throat. After Kanata was gone.. He would have to raise his daughter alone. Could he really do it.. to raise a daughter by himself? Would she lack all the qualities that a maternal love would give her?

"Sou-kun.." His wife's words broke his heart. He could hear the sadness and hope in her voice, and knew that she had said everything she needed to say. She reached up to him, cradling his head and held him to her chest, rubbing his hair with gentle hands.

Sojiro let himself go, allowed the tears to come and the words to flow. "K-Kanata, I don't want you to go.. Don't leave me! I want.. I wanted to raise a daughter together, not alone.." He felt a drop on his head, and he felt terrible for making his wife cry. But he couldn't.. If he let her go without getting this out of his system, he would be lost in his grief.

"Sou-kun.. I believe in you. I don't want to go, there are so many things we need to do. I.. I want to be with you longer!" She rested her head on his. Taking a slow, shuddering breath, she kept going. "Will you.. do one last thing for me?" She had accepted her fate, but her husband had yet to do so.

"Yes.. Anything!" He confirmed, a determined light in his eyes.

"Could you stay with me? Until.." The implication behind Kanata's words broke the man's heart. Yet, he nodded.

"Yes. I'll be here.. I won't leave your side."

...

...

 _"Remember.. Sou-kun.. I love you. Take care of our daughter."_

His wife's last words clicked in his head like the last piece of a puzzle. Suddenly, he found a new source of vigor.

"Konata.."

End Flashback

Tadao sat in silence, just listening, placing a comforting hand on Sojiro's arm as the man finished his story in tears.

Miki told herself not to cry, but she still had to wipe a tear from her eye. She had never heard someone speak with such emotion and tender care. She stepped forwards, wiping a tear from the widowed man's eye with a tissue. "I'm sure your wife would be proud of you.. You did your best to raise your daughter after she passed away, and nobody can say otherwise."

"Yes. For you to have raised Konata for 18 years by yourself.. It's no small task. You're a good man, Sojiro. I'm sure Konata is proud to have you as her father." Tadao spoke up, speaking with admiration and sympathy.

"Haha.. Konata's way of saying she loves me is calling me an old pervert." Sojiro joked, having recovered from the influx of emotion.

/-/

Sojiro stepped out, into the cold night air. "Thank you for having me. It was great getting to know you two, and I'll bet my daughter will be surprised you managed to pull me out of the house!" Miki and Tadao smiled.

"No problem. Come by anytime, it was great talking with you." With a final goodbye, the three parted, leaving Sojiro alone.

Right now, all he had were the stars above him and the ground below his feet. But there was someone in his heart. _"Kanata.."_

Reminiscing, he let out a satisfied sigh. This was the second time he told this story. The first time, he had told his daughter when she was 4-years old. He wasn't sure if she remembered, but now he felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. _"I'm proud of Konata.. Are you?"_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I woke up with no goal for today, so I decided to write for this story, and I think it turned out rather well. I don't know how far I can go with Sojiro or Miki and Tadao, review or PM me about whether or not you want to see more of them. I personally was holding back tears while writing the end part of this chapter, because Sojiro and Kanata honestly deserved more than what they got handed. Anyways, onward!**

Sym: Welcome back to the chapter's end. Today, we have Miki and Tadao Hiiragi for being here with us!

Miki: Hello! *smile*

Tadao: It's no problem, we're happy to be here.

Sym: So, today you talked with Sojiro about your family life, and he told you about his. In general, what do you think of Konata's father?

Miki: He's very polite, and he's the type of person to get emotionally attached to his friends and family. It's terrible that his wife passed away.

Tadao: Konata tells us about her father, but we've met him today and he didn't seem like the same person. Maybe he's just different when he's with family..

Sym: That's right! In a way, he's like Konata. He can be polite and courteous, but he also has another side to him that you could almost describe as mature yet childish.

Tadao: I think that he's a very strong man. He got over his grief for his wife in under four months, and he's been taking care of Konata ever since. On top of that, he refuses to remarry in honor of his wife's memory.

Miki: It's really romantic.. They were best friends since childhood, and she loved him for loving her. I really wish we could've met his wife..

Sym: Well.. I believe the properties of the Chapter's End might be able to just do that. I could do my best to get Kanata here on the show.

Tadao: You're joking.. right?

Miki: Really? You **have** to try and get her! I'm sure Sojiro would love a chance to talk with her!

Sym: I'll do my best! For now, thanks to our guests Miki and Tadao for joining us today, and we'll see you in the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6: Uncontrollable Desire

Considering a stealthy approach and an attempt to sneak up to her room, she decided to forgo the idea. It was nearly noon, at least one of her sisters would be in the kitchen or living room. She sighed, opened the door, and called out.

"Hey, I'm back!" Kagami's greeting must've startled someone, for there was a loud clattering in the kitchen and a startled cry. Recognizing the voice, she momentarily paused. "Huh? Tsukasa, did I scare you?"

"O-oh, sis.. Umm.. sort of. I forgot you were coming back today, hehe.." Her embarassed face turned to one of surprise as she looked back at whatever she was making. Forgetting about Kagami, she scrambled to fix her mistake, hurriedly sweeping up a mess on the counter while trying to keep something from burning. "Hold on, I've gotta fix this!"

Kagami listened as the airhead muttered to herself, frantically managing the kitchen with the expertise of an experienced multi-tasker. _"Funny how she's such an airhead, but she's so skilled when it comes to cooking."_ Frowning, she realized she had nearly no success when it came to preparing food. _"I need to ask Tsukasa and Konata to teach me. Maybe if I keep trying.."_

"Welcome back Kagami! How was your trip?" Hearing someone address her, she tuned back into the real world and faced the perpetrator. "Oh, hey Inori. It was alright.. Busy as usual, but it was fun."

"Hey Kagami, what's up?" Hearing another voice address her, she immediately knew who it was, holding back a groan. For now, she would try her best to be civil; Don't attack unless provoked.

"Hey, Matsuri!" Kagami forced out, doing her best to put a welcoming smile on her face.

"How was Comiket? Lemme take a look at what you bought!" Matsuri begged, already reaching for Kagami's bag. As expected, the bag was swiftly drawn out of her reach.

"As generous as that sounds, I'll keep it to myself." No way was she letting Matsuri see the Strawberry Panic that she had at the bottom of her bag. Matsuri teased her relationship with Konata enough already.

"Did you buy me anything?" Matsuri grinned.

"Sorry, I only took enough money to buy what I needed. Stuff there is expensive, unless you want to hand over about 5,000 yen for a couple doujin." Kagami was exaggerating quite a bit, but going to Comiket really did strain your wallet.

"Pfft.. Is it really that hard to be nice to me for once?" Matsuri pouted, clearly faking it. Kagami just rolled her eyes, and tried to push past her older sister.

"Wait, one last question!" Matsuri promised, ignoring the annoyed look in her sister's eyes. "Did you do anything?"

Her question was met with a blank stare. "What? Do what?" Kagami asked, still not sure where this was going. But then she did.

"With Konata. Staying in the same hotel room as your girlfriend for two nights? Did you guys get it on in-"

"WHOA, whoa whoa whoa, that's none of your business! For your information, we did not do anything _suspicious_ , thank you very much!" Glaring, Kagami tried once more to push past her tormentor.

As Kagami trodded to her room, Matsuri turned to Inori with a pleased expression on her face. "Did you see how she reacted? And how she blushed a little bit?" Nodding, Inori waited for her to continue. "She obviously did it with Konata!"

"But her reaction would be the same even if she didn't. Bringing up topics like that tend to annoy her, right?" Inori asked, not sure she followed Matsuri's reasoning.

"But she stayed in a hotel room with Konata! For two nights! And they've just recently realized their long-lasting love for each other!" Matsuri winked, a little dumbfounded at Inori's innocence.

"Well, try not to bring it up again today. It's probably not a good idea to poke her too much, let her calm down before you do anything again." Inori stared at Matsuri, who quickly broke eye contact.

"Yeah, yeah.. I won't.." Inori smiled, patted her on the head, and walked away.

Matsuri pouted. _"Man, does she think I'm a cat? Petting me on the head like that.. jeez, she's so weird."_

/-/

Instead of attempting to assess the situation, Konata just pushed open the door and alerted everybody of her presence. "Hi dad, hi Yutaka! I'm back from the land of otaku, bearing loot and treasure for my loved ones!" Bouncing to the table, she quickly emptied her bag onto the table.

"Did you get anything good?" Sojiro questioned, already starting to look through the _loot_ , nodding sagely at several things, blinking in surprise at others. This was a process they'd gone through many times before; Konata came home from a convention, and if Sojiro didn't go himself, then he would wait for her to get back so they could have the joy of sharing and discussion.

"The best thing in here is probably that one, right there." She pointed to a doujin on the table. "That one's special because the mangaka didn't put it out on the internet, and decided to make it exclusive to Comiket. He only had 50 copies, so I made him the priority target.

"Whoa, nice job! And what about this one? Is this the real deal?"  
"Yeah, it is! I got it from the same guy, he managed to get a couple of those in stock, I'm not sure how but it worked out for me.."

Yutaka just sat there, watching curiously as the two of them went back and forth, both of them in their otaku modes at the moment. She was never really sure what were talking about, since she wasn't familiar with the subject as much as Konata and Sojiro were. Wanting to know what the big deal was, she impulsively picked out one of the books and flipped through it.

For a moment, she had no idea what was really happening. Then, something clicked in her brain and her entire face turned dark red. Closing the book with a nervous yelp, she waited for a few seconds, then opened it again determinedly. _"This.. is.."_

"Having fun Yutaka?" At this, Yutaka jumped and closed the book in embarassment, trying to look away from the smug expression painted on Konata's alarmingly close face.

"Umm.. I.. uhh-" Her stuttering was silenced by Konata's finger on her lips.

"That's okay, you don't need to say anything." Shooing the girl away, Konata smirked at the deep blush on her cousin's cheek. Hesitating, Yutaka nodded and dashed up to her room, holding the book to her chest.

"Was that what I think it was?" Sojiro asked.

"Strawberry Panic doujin with some H-scenes?" Konata confirmed, not a single trace of shame or embarassment in her voice.

"I thought so. Is it really okay for her to be reading that? Yutaka is so innocent, I don't think she can handle it.." Sojiro frowned. It felt like Konata was slowly corrupting the purity of their tiniest, pink-haired girl.

"Oh, she's interested all right. You should've seen her eyes when she closed the book, it looked like she was conflicted between wanting to read it and wanting to run away. She's so moe when her face is all red!" Konata laughed and grinned triumphantly, as if she had set it all up in the first place.

Just consider it a coincidence that particular book was closest to where Yutaka was sitting.

/-/

The sharp taste of _watermelon_ filled her mouth. At least, they said it was watermelon flavor. Miyuki tried her best not to cringe at the synthetic taste of the toothbrush, knowing that the longer she resisted, the longer she would have to be subject to those harsh dentistry tools. Bracing herself, she lie still and did her best to hold in a whimper.

"Alright, that's it." With that, Miyuki breathed a sigh of relief, but she had thought too soon. "The dentist will be coming in to check your teeth. Please wait here."

A couple minutes was all it took to stack more stress and agitation on top of Miyuki. By the time the dentist came in, she was shivering and blinking fearfully. "Are you alright?" The dentist asked wearily. It'd been a long day, and it looked like he had to deal with a terrified patient.

Nodding, Miyuki complied with his instructions, reluctantly opening her mouth to make way for the dentist to do his work. As his tools made contact, poking and clicking against her teeth, the dentophobic girl shut her eyes. _"They're so sharp.. what if he draws blood?"_ Terrified silence filled the room.

Miyuki half ran, half walked out of the dental building, not looking back. Just thankful to be out, she didn't even notice she had walked into a group of people.

"Hi, Yuki-chan! Did you just have a dentist appointment?" Miyuki recognized that voice instantly. Turning to face Konata, she smiled ruefully.

"Oh, hello Konata, Tsukasa, Kagami. Yes, I just finished my check-up. Thankfully I've been taking good care of them, and I don't have to go back for another couple of months." Her smile grew a bit wider as she happily realized she was free of the dentist for quite a while. _"I'm so glad my mom taught me how to take better care of my teeth. If I just keep doing what she told me to do, I'll only have to put up with the dentist two or three times a year!"_

"Yuki-chan." No response. "Miyuki-chan?" Miyuki was humming quietly to herself, obviously thinking about something. Konata gave up asking and decided to walk closer to the pink-haired airhead. Reaching up, she deftly took the glasses right off her face, dashing away and standing so that Tsukasa was between her and her victim.

"...O-Oh, where are my.. Did I drop them?" Poor Miyuki searched frantically for her glasses, checking her purse and looking down at the ground. "Did any of you see it?"

As Miyuki panicked, Kagami moved closer to the prankster and hugged her around the waist. Unable to avoid a startled yelp, Konata did her best to hide her surprise. "Ah! U-uhh, I didn't expect public displays of affection from you, Kagami!" Without speaking, Kagami just smiled slyly, grabbing the glasses from the otaku and letting go of the hug.

"Here Miyuki. Konata was playing one of her tricks again." Kagami offered the glasses back to the girl, getting a relieved look in return.

"Ah, I'm glad you found them. Thank you." Miyuki put her glasses on, then looked at Konata. There was no hostility or annoyance in her gaze. Seeing the offered willow branch, Konata put a hand behind her head, giggling.

"Sorry Miyuki.. You just spaced out, and I couldn't resist the opportunity." Grinning, she felt pleased at Kagami's disapproval.

"You shouldn't prank Miyuki like that. She doesn't deserve it, she's been nothing but nice to us." Rolling her eyes, Kagami eyed the grin on Konata's face. "You really are shameless, aren't you?"

"I may be shameless, but what about the person who only hugs me if she wants something?"

"That's you. Whenever you want homework, or to take advantage of me, I get a hug. Every time." Kagami silently cheered, seeing Konata falter as realization dawned on her.

 _"Wait, she's right. Crap, I really do hug her whenever I need to ask her for something."_

Konata smiled again, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend. "But it works! Whenever I hug you, you say yes. Every time." Kagami struggled, trying to remove the clingy girl from her.

"Tch, get off! Stop that, we aren't alone, idiot!" Acting annoyed to hide her embarassment, she tried to loosen the vice around her waist. After five seconds with no progress in prying the girl away, she gave up and let Konata hug her. Not that she really minded, but being too friendly wasn't the best course of action, right? "You're so annoying. Can you just get off me?" To her dismay, Konata decided to listen.

"Okay Kagamin!" With a cheery smile (Kagami thought she was frustratingly smug) Konata let go and continued walking as if nothing had happened. After a couple moments, she wrapped herself around the tsundere again. Kagami groaned and looked away, but she didn't argue. _"Geez, Konata. Eventually, I'm going to become all lovey-dovey in public."_ She almost shuddered at the thought.

"Would it really be that bad to love me in public?" Konata whispered, making eye contact with Kagami. Immediately feeling bad for thinking such a thing, Kagami frowned thoughtfully. _"Did she read my thoughts? ...Maybe I should be a bit friendlier.. I guess I am sort of rude when we're not alone.."_ The blue-haired trickster looked away, the sadness in her eyes was replaced by one of devilish satisfaction, and she winked at Tsukasa and Miyuki.

"Umm.. Where'd that come from Konata?" Kagami didn't apologize right off the bat. She had to at least put up some sort of fight.

"I know you love it when I hug you, even though you always call me annoying! I can tell, it's because of your tsundere personality!" Konata smiled, her relaxed green eyes meeting Kagami's. She had shifted the conversation, and Kagami had no idea on how to shift it back. Already forgetting the previous topic, she went with the flow.

"Tch, whatever." Kagami rolled her eyes, looking away from Konata, but she slid an arm around the girl. Konata just hummed happily, another victory under her belt.

"Those two really are something. I can't even follow their conversation sometimes.." Tsukasa muttered to Miyuki, getting a sympathetic smile in return. Seemed like they were the two usually left out.

"You know, sometimes I think even they forget what they were talking about." She watched the two as they walked arm in arm. "But it always leads into something like this."

"Wait.. Why are we here?" Tsukasa suddenly asked, having forgotten the original purpose for coming here.

"Eh? I don't know.. I wasn't told anything about where you three are going."

"Uhh.. umm.. Hold on." Nervously blushing, she walked ahead of her companion. "Sis! Sis, what did we come out here to do again?" Tsukasa called out. Miyuki watched as Tsukasa's face lit up as she remembered their goal.

 _"We both are rather absent-minded.. It's no wonder that she usually ends up walking with me."_

/-/

The girls sat down in the booth, picking up their menu and making small talk about the menu items, and about other things in general. By the time the waiter had come around to take their orders, Konata had started telling one of her epic stories..

"..So I let her borrow it, and she ran off to her room all nervous and blushing! It was so moe, the way that she gets so embarassed reading that stuff!" Smiling at the thought, Konata turned to look at her friends. They all bore their signature expressions: Miyuki looked deep in thought, Kagami was glaring at her with disapproval, and Tsukasa had the usual blank look, with a tinge of embarassment visible through her blush.

"You're corrupting that girl. Let her keep her innocence for longer, seriously. She has no reason to get involved in your disturbing world." Kagami reprimanded the corruptor. _"How the heck does Yutaka live with those two? Does she even know what's going on half of the time?"_ Kagami then realized that if her relationship didn't crash and burn to ashes, she would probably end up living with Konata.

 _"I wonder how it would be like to live with Konata. Hmm.."_

Nobody noticed Kagami's eyes glazing over, losing their focus. The conversation continued, with Miyuki added her own thoughts. "Well, it's normal for someone to get embarassed about particular topics. Even though she knows that you and Kagami are a couple, it's probably still strange for her to see a yuri couple engaging in.. lewd acts."

"Ah, that's why we need to get her used to it! If she gets accustomed to yuri stuff, then it won't be that bad if she happens to walk in on me and Kagami making out and.." Leaving it at that, she glanced at Kagami to gauge her reaction. Surprisingly, she seemed to have spaced out. _"Hmm.."_

Before Konata could come up with an idea to score another victory over her girlfriend, Tsukasa unknowingly interrupted at the right moment. "W-well, I've never read yuri.. so I wouldn't know.. but it's just two girls instead of a girl and a guy, so.. isn't it sort of the same as a straight romance?"

"Ah, you're on the right track.. If you're used to adult content between a girl and a guy, then yuri should be no problem for you. In order of intensity from lowest to highest, I would rate it as yuri, straight, yaoi." Konata held up her finger, speaking in a factual tone of voice. "While yuri might be considered the least intense choice, girls can relate much more, so they can go deeper when it comes to their relationship. A girl and a guy are **usually** more careful, except some special cases with personalities and blah blah. Two guys together is usually the hardest because they butt heads and there's a lot more when it comes to who's dominant. Sometimes you can have dominance switching between both people." After her lesson, there was a momentary silence.

"Uh.. Konata.. you lost me.." Tsukasa sweatdropped, having no understanding of Konata's speech whatsoever.

"I think I sort of understand.." Miyuki said, grabbing the attention of her fellow airhead. "Basically, Konata finds it easiest to read yuri because girls can relate to each other. She's comfortable with straight pairings because the partners are usually caring and friendly, but she has trouble with yaoi because of the constant struggle for dominance and high levels of intensity."

"Yeah, Miwiki-chan's got it! I have taught you well, apprentice!" Konata cheered. Miwiki blushed modestly, claiming something about not being that great.

 _"I still don't get it.."_ Tsukasa fretted. Smiling and thanking her friends for the explanation, she retreated from the discussion. "Y-yeah.. I get it now.. Thanks for, uhh, explaining it Konata and Miyuki-san!" As the chatter continued, the server approached their table.

"Who ordered the curry?"

"Oh, that's me. Thanks."

 **-Kagami's Imagination-**

Opening the door, Kagami led the way into her empty house. She closed the door and put her bags down against the wall, then took off her shoes, her girlfriend doing the same. As she let out a relaxed sigh, Konata suddenly grabbed her and pinned her against the wall, kissing her passionately. After her initial surprise, Kagami returned the kiss, their tongues intertwined. Konata broke away, panting. She looked away, but the streak of red running across her face didn't go unnoticed by Kagami.

"S-sorry.. I wanted to do that all day, but.. I know you don't like it when we're in public.." Konata stammered, her blush growing as Kagami put her hands on the otaku's cheeks, turning her so that she could see those vibrant green eyes.

"Konata, thank you for thinking of me first." She kissed her quickly on the lips, drawing back after a second. "..But, we're alone now, so.." Grinned evilly, she moved suddenly, spinning Konata around and trapping the girl with her back to the wall. "Let's have some fun, shall we?"

Konata gasped, her blush turned her into a beautiful mix of red, green, and blue. Before Konata could react, she felt a pair of lips against her own, and her body melted. After nearly a minute, she broke away for air, looking at Kagami with desire swimming in her eyes. "Kagami.. you're so.."

Kagami just smiled, leaning in without making contact. "Shh. Just enjoy it while it lasts." Kagami closed the last inches between them, her eyes closing as she thrust her tongue into Konata's mouth. Konata went limp in her arms, and Kagami slowly slid a hand down the slender girl's body and started to..

 **-Reality-**

"K-Kagami!" Konata yelped, sporting a rare blush. Getting no response, she shouted again, louder this time. "Kagamin! What are you doing?"

Kagami's eyes focused, locking onto the girl she was holding in her arms. Blinking confusedly, she wondered why Konata was yelling. "Huh? Oh! Konata, why are you shouting? You're making a scene!"

Konata raised her eyebrows, a gesture that tipped off Kagami. Looking down, her mouth opened in shock. "G-gah! W-what are you doing?" Withdrawing her hand, she blushed furiously. Why was she touching Konata? In front of Tsukasa and Miyuki? Panicking, she let go of Konata, scooting away and crossing her arms.

"What am **I** doing? You're the one who started making out with me." Konata argued. Kagami stared at her. "You just grabbed me and pushed me against the wall, started to make out with me, then I guess you were getting distracted because you almost pulled off my-"

Kagami covered her best friend's mouth, barely managing to stop the words from being uttered. _"Oh crap, what was I doing? Was I actually.."_ The tsundere cursed her imagination. _"I can't believe I let my mind control my body. How am I gonna get out of this one?"_ Konata reached up and moved the hand stopping her speech.

"So, Kagamin.." She said in that all too familiar voice, that one signaling an incoming attack. "Were you dreaming about me?"

"Err.." Kagami's wit failed her, and she couldn't reply.

"What were you doing in your dream?" Konata persisted.

"N-nothing!" Protesting, she blushed and tried to look stern.

Konata just ignored her, continuing with her (Kagami's) fantasy. "I'll bet you had innocent ol' me pinned up against the wall.. Kissing her and sliding your hands down her body.."

"You wish!" _"Seriously! How does she know?!"_

"And just as you were about to take it off.. Poof!" Konata suddenly sat back at a normal distance from her lover, throwing her hands above her head with a triumphant smile. "Right?"

Kagami said nothing.

Tsukasa and Miyuki, still blushing heavily from watching Kagami unconsciously express her love, did their best to take it in stride.

"Uh, it's.. romantic, how you two are so.. comfortable with.. public affection." Miyuki slowly stated, doing her best to remain in control of her own speech.

Tsukasa stuttered nervously and blurt out the first thing that came to mind. "S-sis, you should just s-stay over at Konata's tonight.. We're still here, you know?"

Konata hummed, hugging the dreamer's arm. "She can stay over at my place. It's not safe for her to be in the same house as you, Tsukasa, with all this pent-up sexual desire." Kagami gave the bluenette a withering glance, but she didn't argue.

"...sorry Tsukasa and Miyuki.. I don't know what came over me." Trying to gracefully bow out of the situation, she added a note of finality to her voice. "Since Konata seems to have made up her mind, I guess I'm staying at her place tonight."

 _"This is so embarassing."_ She glanced at Konata, who sat quietly, grinning slyly and not trying to hide her blush.

"...S-so.. uhh, this curry is really good.."

"I agree Tsukasa, it's.. not too.. spicy..?"

 _"This is pretty awkward.."_ Konata didn't seem at all bothered by the strange atmosphere at the table. If anything, she did her best not to burst into laughter.

/-/

Konata opened the door to her house, leading the way and closing the door behind her friend. She let her take her shoes off, then as she walked inside, pinned her against the wall and kissed her without warning. Kagami jumped as she felt her back hit the wall, but she kissed back until the two had to part for air, and Konata opened her mouth to talk.

"I'll bet I did that in your dream."

"...nn.." The reluctance told Konata she was right.

"Was I right?" Still, she decided to press on, hoping for a good event-scene. _"Three.. two.. one.."_

Kagami muttered under her breath, nodding almost imperceptibly. She hid her blush by deciding to play along. Pushing off of the wall, she easily moved Konata, switching their positions. Konata's was surprised at the reversal of dominance, her surprised yelp was cut off as she returned the kiss she was being given.

"Oho, and what happened after this?" Konata teased, her mouth curving upwards into a sly smile. Even though she was prepared, she blushed involuntarily as Kagami grinned, her hands sliding around Konata's bare back and up her shirt.

Then, she stopped, leaving her lover frowning in disappointment. "Nothing happened after that. Let's go up to your room."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **This chapter felt different than usual, tell me what you think! I delayed this one because I had a great idea for a one shot, and that's out under the title of Lucky Star Sting of Regret. It's a Romance / Hurt & Comfort, if you're into that check it out! Read it anyways, I felt good writing it. Anyways back to this story, please leave review and PM with criticism and what you think of the story, questions will be showcased and answered. Thanks!**

Sym: Welcome back to the chapter's end, this is Sym here with Tsukasa and Miyuki!

Miyuki: Hello, thank you for having us Sym!

Tsukasa: Hi! Umm.. this is the first time I've been here.. what are we doing exactly?

Sym: I'm going to ask you some questions or give you some prompts, and we'll have a short discussion about it!

Tsukasa: Oh.. okay!

Sym: So, today Kagami got a little frisky with Konata while you were having lunch. Can I ask you what your thoughts on being in a lesbian relationship?

Miyuki: Well.. I'm not in a relationship currently, so I can't speak with 100% convinction, but I think it's fine to harbor romantic feelings towards your friend, even if they are of the same gender.

Tsukasa: W-well.. I don't know if I'm a lesbian or not..

Miyuki: Hmm.. Do you naturally feel yourself interested in boys or girls?

Tsukasa: ..I'm not sure.. I never found myself feeling strangely towards girls, but I never took an interest in boys either..

Sym: Maybe you just haven't found the right person?

Miyuki: I believe you're right. Kagami and Konata both claim disinterest in everybody except for each other.

Tsukasa: That's really romantic, right?

Sym: It is, those two will go far together.

Sym: For now, that'll be all! Thank you, Tsukasa and Miyuki, we'll see you in the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7: Peaceful Date

"Ugh, I've ruined my reputation and dignity! How are they going to see me now?!" Stress evident in her voice, it was obvious that she was referring to how she had lost control earlier that day. Konata pressed her body against Kagami's and holding her in a tight hug.

"Heh, I thought it was great!" Konata cheered, oblivious to her girlfriend's discomfort. "You're finally starting to love me in public!"

"That's not a good thing! Did you seriously not notice how awkward it was for the rest of the time?" Kagami groaned. Konata gasped, tears springing to her eyes, and she sobbed.

"I-it's not a.. good thing to love me?" Konata cried out, then grinned at Kagami, all traces of sadness gone. "That was a joke." She earned a menacing look and a growl of annoyance.

"Well, I think you were cute." Konata said sincerely. Kagami looked at her, annoyance written on her face.

"You always say that. Everything I do is cute to you." Kagami sighed, rolling onto her back and staring at the ceiling.

"It's not like I'm lieing about it."

"That's the worst part."

"You got really distracted and almost tore off my clothes in public! Then you were all panicky and blushing and in denial.. That's everything I love about a tsundere!" Konata grinned. "But you really should control your primal desires, Kagamin.. We both know that when you're turned on, you get **really** into it!"

Konata ignored the glare coming from the purple-haired girl on the bed, continuing so that she wouldn't get interrupted. "If you get distracted and start to dominate me in public, it's impossible for me to stop you! You'll rip off my clothes and have your way with my body.. As much as I would love that, we'll get a lot of attention!" While she was talking, she walked over to the bed and leaned over her girlfriend, her eyes full of mischief, waiting for a reaction.

"Well, you better stop me if that happens. Not that it will, but if you let me do that in public.." Her voice trailed off threateningly.

"Aha, Kagamin I just said I can't! If I try to stop you, you'll strip me and force your tongue into my mouth and your fingers into my-" Due to a hand covering her mouth, Konata tried to smile with her eyes instead.

"Please stop. It won't happen again. That's the end of this, okay?" Kagami stated, staring into the emerald eyes until the girl nodded. Removing her hand, she pulled the petite girl into a hug.

"Alright Kagamin!" Konata said contently. Moments went by as they just sat together, basking in the shared warmth.

"Hey.. Konata?"

"What's up?"

"I'm.. sorry for holding us back."

"..Uhh, if you mean at the diner, I'm sort of glad you held ba-"

"No, not that.. I mean like.. you know, not.. loving you in public.." Kagami interrupted, rushing on with her explanation.

"Eh? Kagami, I don't care about that." Konata smiled, not her prankster smile but a sincere one.

"W-wait, you don't? But you-"

"No, no, that's just my personality speaking. I'd wait forever for you to be ready to be open with our relationship. And if you never want to go that far, then.." Konata put her hand on top of Kagami's chest, and placed Kagami's hand on her chest. Suddenly she grinned wickedly.

"..as long as I get to touch your breasts, I don't mind!"

"W-wha? Ugh.. geez, Konata for a second I thought you were going to say something romantic and not perverted for once."

"Heheh, that was a joke. As long as you love me in your heart and I love you in my heart, I'll stay with you forever, Kagamin. I don't care how you express your love for me, as long as you love me in your heart."

The passing annoyance Kagami felt was completely gone now, and she kissed Konata on the lips.

 _"You know, for an otaku, she is really romantic. She makes me look bad."_

Then, Konata ruined the moment.

"I saw this in one of my visual novels, and to see how romantic it was. How was it?" Konata grinned. Kagami groaned and rolled her eyes, mentally slapping herself in the forehead.

 _"Of course not."_

/-/

"You know what I just realized, Kagami?" Konata asked out of nowhere, leaning back into Kagami and looking up at her. The two were sitting next to each other, fully clothed, just enjoying each other's presence.

"Hm.. What's up?" Kagami prompted, absent-mindedly stroking the head of blue hair.

"We haven't gone on a date." Konata watched her girlfriend with a neutral expression.

"Mm.. okay Konata." Kagami agreed.

"I didn't say anything yet." Konata stated, still staring lazily into her friend's face.

"...Wait, what?" Kagami shook herself out of her half-conscious daze. "Oh.. oh yeah.. a date..?"

"What do you mean _a date_? You just said you would go on one." Konata questioned, tilting her head slightly.

"But you said you didn't ask me on a date." Frowning, trying to make sense of the situation. Konata's logic was infallible.

"You still said you were okay with it, even though I didn't ask you." Konata blinked, keeping a straight face.

"Seriously, where are you taking this conversation?" Now somewhat annoyed, Kagami glared at the otaku. "I can't even understand half of the things you put forward."

"I can't answer that. Some things are better left unknown!" Konata smiled smugly.

"Whatever.."

"So.. where are we going?"

"Huh? You're the one that asked me on a date, you should be the one deciding what we do!"

"No, I didn't ask anything. You just said that you-" Konata said, interrupted by a frustrated Kagami.

"Alright, alright, I get it! I'll plan something out, fine."

Konata grinned. _"More points for me!"_

 **-The Next Day-**

"You know it's sort of weird that we're going on a date the day after you slept over at my house, right?" Konata wondered, changing into her clothes. As she slipped her shirt on, she got her response.

"How is that weird?" Konata glanced over at her date, who was changing in the same room. This time she was putting on clothes that were more or less her size. The pair of them had went shopping and bought clothes for each other, so Kagami could go outside looking more or less decent.

"Well, in a date you're supposed to agree on a time and meet up, and then one person, usually the person who sets up the time and place, is supposed to be the one who has the entire thing planned out!"

"Does it even matter?" Kagami raised an eyebrow. Whenever it came to things like this, the otaku was either romantic or a complete mood-breaker.

"No, but I just think it's sort of strange that we're starting our first date in the same house."

Rolling her eyes, Kagami left the room.

"Whatever. Let's go."

Konata hurried to finish putting her clothes on, then ran towards the door. "Wait for me! You can't go on a date without your lovely girlfriend!"

The house was quiet, but outside it was even more so. There was near to no ambience, disregarding the birds that called out to each other occasionally, and all focus went into the environment. Wispy clouds moving across the blue sky, the sun's rays shining down warmly, it was a perfect day. You could almost sit down anywhere, look up at the peaceful sky, and spend hours just taking in the world around you.

"So, where are we going?" Konata asked, almost sad to disturb the picturesque scene. Kagami, lost in the beauty of the view, jolted back to the present.

"Oh, it's a beautiful day, isn't it?" Kagami smiled, ignoring the question. _"Come on Konata, play along with me.."_

"Hm? Oh, yeah! It really is pretty!" Konata grinned, moving closer to Kagami. "In ero games, a scene like this usually foreshadows an event.."

"This isn't an ero game. If you're trying to make a move on me, you'll have to try harder." With a challenging smirk, Kagami stepped away from the otaku, who grinned in return.

"Challenge accepted! I'll make you fall for me, oh tsundere of my dreams!" Konata pointed at the _tsundere of her dreams_ , who couldn't help but smile at the theatrics.

"You know I've already fallen for you, silly." Grabbing the extended hand, she pulled Konata in with ease and held her close.

"Aha! What a simple task, already complete." Konata ended sagely, not resisting but humming happily.

/-/

Kagami felt the weight on her side increase, and she staggered slightly. "Hey, what're you doing?" Getting no response, she tried again. "Konata. Konata, answer me."

"Nn.. Kagamin.." Muttered the girl, and she exhaled, her grip around Kagami's waist not loosening.

"...You annoying little.." Somehow Konata had managed to fall asleep. _"How do you fall asleep outside when it's so bright? And we're on a date! You're walking for gods' sake!"_

"Seriously.." With a sigh, Kagami searched for possible solutions. She figured the easiest thing to do would be to wake her up, wait, or carry her. One of those.

"Konata. Konata, wake up. Konata. We're on a date." Doing her best to wake the sleeping girl up without resorting to yelling or hurting her, Kagami tried everything. Nudging didn't work, tweaking her nose, prodding her in the ribs. Before she could think about what she was about to do, she leaned down and pecked Konata on the lips. _"Oh man, I could totally take advantage of her right now."_

Realizing what she was doing, Kagami blushed and looked around, making sure nobody had seen what she did. With a sigh of relief, she tossed that solution aside. _"No, I'm not going to take advantage of Konata while she's sleeping. Why did that even come to mind?"_

Deciding not to wait for her date to wake up, Kagami released a sigh of frustration. If she waited, they would lose a lot of time, if Konata didn't wake up. _"I guess I'm carrying her.."_

Turning away from Konata, she lowered herself to slide her hands behind the girl's knees. Clasping her hands, she lifted the bluenette easily and carefully onto her back. Blushing lightly, Kagami tried to ignore the blue hair that was resting against her neck and shoulders. _"At least she's small and doesn't weigh much.. I could actually carry her for a while."_

/-/

Fumbling with the door, Kagami managed to push it halfway open before she had to let go and secure her hold on Konata before she lost her grip. Before she could try again, the door slides open and she's met by an amused smile. Nodding her thanks, she stepped inside.

"Hello! Two seats?" The waitress assumes.

"Yes, thank you." Kagami replied, smiling slightly. As the waitress gestured for her to follow, the girl she was carrying stirred softly. She muttered a couple words, her head shifting on Kagami's shoulder. Her ahoge bounced around in front of Kagami's face.

"Your friend?" Asks the waitress, making idle chatter as she led them to the table, stepping aside graciously.

"Yeah.. she fell asleep on the way here." The purple-haired girl responded, gently setting her friend down.

Leaving them alone, the waitress went to address another group of customers who had just entered. Kagami sat down next to Konata, who had her arms on the table and her head in her arms. Putting an arm around the otaku's shoulder, she ran her fingers through the girl's hair, waiting for her to wake up.

After a minute or two, Konata stirred, making noises that Kagami could only describe as _cute_.

"..nn.. hm..?" She tilted her head on her side to look at the girl who was touching her. "Mm, Kagamin.. morning.."

"Morning Konata." Kagami concealed a smile, not wanting the girl to wake up in too friendly of an environment. "Can you please wake yourself up now?"

"Hm." Doing so, Konata sat up and stretched her arms above her head. Blinking her eyes, she looked around. "Oh.. why are we here?" Her question got her a sigh from Kagami, and a playful poke in the cheek.

"Did you forget? We're on a date. Our **first** date." Kagami answered, stressing the word. Konata's eyes widened.

"Wha? I fell asleep on our first date? Ohh, bad move.." Konata sighed, looking up at Kagami with an apologetic glance. "Sorry Kagami. I hope I didn't ruin anything."

Kagami was surprised by the sincerity, and she responded by rubbing the top of Konata's head, as if petting her. "Meh, don't worry about it. We were just walking, anyways."

"No.. I should've tried to stay awake.. I don't want to hurt your feelings.. This is really important to me, our relationship. Please don't think I'm taking it as a joke, okay?" Konata nearly begged.

"Konata, come on. I'm not hurt, and I don't want you to think of us as a joke either, alright?" Kagami took Konata's hands in her own, squeezing firmly. "But I know that you care for me, and I care about you. Just because you fell asleep doesn't mean we aren't a serious relationship."

Konata smiled and leaned against her lover. "Thanks, Kagami."

"But I want to know if you're feeling alright. It's not normal for you to fall asleep when you aren't trying, and you have a really good memory. I'm a little.. worried for you. I don't want you to get hurt.. If you collapse and make me drag you back home, I won't forgive you."

Blushing lightly, Kagami felt her girlfriend stroke the back of her head. "Aww, my Kagamin is worried for me! Don't be scared, I'm fine. If anything goes wrong, I'll tell you! I won't hide anything about my body from you." Konata sidled up to the blushing tsundere, hugging her tightly.

"Hey! I.. pfft.. You can't end with anything that isn't perverted, can you?" Kagami protested, a blush igniting her face.

"What? I wasn't talking about it that way. I meant that I would tell you if I had any conditions." Konata looked up, mustering as much innocence as she could. A surprising amount, as it turned out.

"O-Oh, um.. yeah. I know that." Gracefully, Kagami quickly changed the topic to hide her embarassment. _"I really am quite perverted now.. This is all her fault. Then again, I shouldn't have expected anything else from extended exposure to this girl."_

"Did you carry me here?"

"Yeah, you wouldn't wake up. Thankfully you're so small, it wasn't that hard."

"Hehe.. How'd you carry me? In your arms? Over the shoulder? Piggyback?"

"You wish I carried you in my arms. I dragged you here."

"Eh?! Kagamin, you soiled a beautiful girl like me? How could you?"

Stifling a nose bleed, Hiyori stared at the two girls who were hugging tightly. _"Yuri overload!"_ Turning back to her American friend, she grinned, getting a similar reaction back. "Isn't this great?!"

"Yeah! They're cute! But let's leave them alone. It is their first date, after all. We can bother them about it later." Patricia answered, pulling the mangaka back to face her.

"Oh.. yeah.. This is great material though!" Hiyori made a mental sketch, capturing every detail, from how Konata was resting her head on Kagami's shoulder, to how Kagami's hand was snaking around the petite girl's waist. _"Oh, how jealous I am of you two."_

/-/

"I didn't actually like sushi until about three years ago." Konata revealed, as she put a piece of sushi in her mouth.

"Hm? Why not?" Asked Kagami.

"I've had a deathly fear of wasabi since I was 9. My dad took me to a sushi restaurant, and I didn't how spicy wasabi was so I ate a lot at once." Konata sweatdropped at the somewhat embarassing memory. "I like sushi now, but I'm still scared of wasabi.."

Kagami smiled, and she took a piece of sushi in her chopsticks, turning Konata's head and offered it to her.

"Whoa! Kagamin is feeding me? Maybe she's trying to trick me into eating wasabi." Konata grinned, but she ate it anyways. "Let's take turns feeding each other!" She offered, already holding her chopsticks up to Kagami's mouth.

"You know, I honestly never thought that we'd turn out like this.. Going on a date, sitting next to each other, feeding each other.. I didn't see it coming."

"Maybe it's because I'm so small?" Konata suggested.

"That has nothing to do with this. But yes, maybe it's because I can't see you unless I decide to look down."

"Ah, you don't have to put it that way.." Konata sweatdropped, suddenly feeling very short. "But you're always trying to find excuses to spend time with me! Don't think I didn't notice, Kagamin..!"

"Tch.. You wish."

"You spend more time in our class than your own class, whenever you see me your eyes light up, you always go shopping with me.." Konata listed the examples on her fingers.

"Whatever.. It's not like I don't enjoy spending time with you." Kagami muttered, sort of hoping Konata wouldn't hear.

"I love spending time with you Kagamin! Even before we started dating!" Konata threw herself against Kagami, grabbing her in a tight hug.

"Yeah, I can tell. If you weren't a total weirdo at times, I probably would've noticed how you felt sooner. But ever since I met you, you've always been rubbing against me and hugging me, so I guess I got used to it as a part of your personality."

"It's my way of expressing myself, and it's to get you used to touching me!" Konata held up a finger. "Tsunderes are usually reluctant to start physical affection, so I had to hug you and touch you all the time so you were used to it." There's that cat-like grin again. "Judging from how you acted that first night at the hotel, it worked!"

Kagami blushed, trying to find somewhere to look besides those playful green eyes. "W-well, that was.. I was feeling.. really adventurous at the time. I don't think I would've done it normally.."

"I know." Smirking, Konata made sure to get really close to her girlfriend. "You're the type to get really aggressive in bed, and then all nervous and cute about it the next day! It turns me on!"

"Sh-shut up, you don't have to talk about it!" Kagami protested. Maybe she should try to take the lead now. "Well, I can't help it. You're so cute when you're vulnerable and making those feeble attempts to get away." Kagami moved her face close, feeling satisfied at the light red color painting the girl's cheeks. "Whenever I see you like that, you can't blame me for wanting to touch you all over." Moving away, she watched the blush on Konata's face grow. "Plus, try to tell me you weren't enjoying it. I swear, all of your moaning probably could've woke up Tsukasa, and nothing wakes her up."

Konata smiled nervously, touching the back of her neck. "Ah, well I've always.. been sort of into yuri.. I'm not interested in girls besides you, but I've always imagined the sex to be good.."

"Even though you're blushing madly, you can't stop sounding perverted for a second." Kagami loved that part about Konata, but she didn't say it. "Let's pay and get out of here."

/-/

Paying their check, Kagami and Konata left the restaurant, squinting a little at the sudden brightness.

"We still have a lot to do! Come on Konata!" Kagami said happily, grabbing her girlfriend's hand and pulling her along.

"H-hey, calm down.. If you keep pulling me like this, I'll trip.."

The two of them half-ran, half-walked down the streets, playing with each other and having fun. Kagami felt like she was walking on clouds. _"I feel so happy right now. It's.. different.. but not unpleasant.."_

Konata couldn't get the smile off her face. _"Kagami is so playful! This is weird, but I could get used to it!"_

/-/

"Ahh! I'm tired." Flopping down onto the bed, her blue hair covered most of the bed. "Kagami works me too hard."

"We weren't even working! If anything, I should be the one who's tired out.." Kagami glared at the girl on the bed. "Anyways, you're getting real comfortable in **my** room, eh?"

"Ah, it's okay because I'm Kagamin's girlfriend, and she loves me too much to be mean to me!" Konata shamelessly shouted, one of her cat grins on her face. "And Kagami likes to make me hers at night, so I'm getting ready. If I don't rest now, I won't have any time at all!"

"S-stop putting it like that! Pfft, you're just like your dad.."

"Isn't it a good thing if I resemble my dad?" Konata looked up at her innocently.

"Not if he's a pervert who goes after every girl he sees, including his own daughter." The tsundere snorted with a disdainful look, pushing the door close behind her.

"Ah, that's just because he loves me!" Still grinning, Konata held up her hand, supposedly a gesture meaning something like _What about it?_

"In the wrong way! Aren't you at least a little creeped out?"

"Only when he asks me to come to bed with him." Saying it so casually and dismissively added the illusion that she wasn't joking. Konata hid a smile at the look she got.

"..." Kagami stared at the blue-haired otaku, her sharp purple eyes narrowing.

"Joking, he hasn't asked me that, yet." Admitting her lie, she laughed nervously. _"Oh, I should be careful about jokes like that. I don't want my dad to get hurt."_

"Good." Kagami walked at the table, taking off her purse and jacket. Pretending to be busy, she shuffled around some objects on the table before heading for the bed and looking down at Konata, hands on her hips. "Because I'm the only one who gets to sleep with you."

"Kagami, you know I would never cheat on you!" Konata flipped onto her stomach, reaching for Kagami with her arms, but she sighed when the girl moved back with a smirk. "Especially not for my dad. I love him, but you win by a little bit."

"Only a little bit?" Kagami frowned, playfully flicking the girl's ahoge, watching it bounce back.

"Well, a lot." She revised, pouting as her _pillow_ was moved away.

"I'm going to need more convincing."

Konata beckoned her closer, and when she complied, she felt Konata latch on around her waist. "I can't convince you while you're being so cold! Come lie down with me and warm up!"

With a somewhat suspicious look, Kagami sat down on the bed, not of her own accord but the will of the girl dragging her down. "Why is it that everything you say sounds so dirty?" Faking a sigh, she _reluctantly_ wrapped her arms around Konata.

"It's because you make them sound dirty!" Blushing lightly, Kagami rolled her eyes.

"Blushing again? I thought you'd be used to me by now!" Konata let go of her vice grip, rubbing her head against Kagami's chest, causing the taller girl to blush even harder, protesting and pushing her away.

 _"That's what I thought too. Apparently I'm wrong."_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I'm out of it today . Tried to add more to this story, ended up failing and deciding to leave it for the next chapter.**

 **Edit: I REALLY WAS OUT OF IT. I totally forgot to upload the chapter ;-; I'm so sorry guys, nervous laughing. Sorry, chapter 7 and 8 are now out!**

 **Do not worry! I will recover soon and I'm starting work on chapter 8 right now! Recently I've been reading a lot of other stories, and I'm jealous of how well I think they've portrayed their characters. I've been thinking about trying to incorporate some of their good points into my own writing, but I'm struggling.**

 **I need feedback on the characters so far, I feel as if Kagami is slightly out of character in certain moments. Tell me if I'm doing good, bad, what I'm doing good, wrong. Your feedback via review & PM is appreciated! TYVM!**

Sym: After that lengthy and somewhat desperate author's note, we are back! Today, Konata will be joining us.

Konata: Hai!

Sym: So, Konata, you and Kagami are looking pretty good in your relationship so far.

Konata: Yeah! She's starting to warm up to the whole thing. She can be cold at times, but I'm working on her.

Sym: Seems like a challenge, dealing with a tsundere. Do you think your dating sims helped?

Konata: For sure! I've mastered the path of the tsundere, I can read their actions and behavior like Shiroe can read the battle!

Sym: What do you think of living with Kagami?

Konata: Wait, living with her? I hadn't thought about that.. *blushing lightly, looking away*

Konata: Uhh, I'd be the house wife! For sure! I can do housework and cooking a lot better than Kagami! If she tries, she'll hurt someone.

Sym: I personally like the idea of you being the house wife, but Kagami trying to cook and do chores would be so _moe_ , amirite?

Konata: As long as you aren't trying to hit on my _waifu_ , I agree! Tsunderes have their moe moments too!

Sym: Nah, don't worry.. Kagami is all yours!

Sym: Anyways, let's end it here on that note. Thank you Konata, see you in the next chapter's end!


	8. Chapter 8: Peaceful State

"..and that led to the empire's defeat in 1984, causing the emperor Taikin to fall from power, and he eventually died a peaceful death the next year. The rebellion- Aha!" Nanako Kuroi's cut off her lecture, eyes hardening as they focused in on a particular student, who's ahoge was swaying sleepily. "Izumi, Izumi, Izumi, what do we have here.."

With a dramatic flourish, she put down her teaching utilities, moving towards her desk. "Can someone tell me what Izumi is doing right now?"

"Uhh.. she's sleeping, Kuroi-sensei."

"Thank you, Sebastian. Can someone tell me why we shouldn't sleep in class?" Kuroi continued, making a show of going through all her drawers, even though she knew exactly where to find what she wanted.

"Because it isn't allowed?" Suggested a boy near the back.

"Because we should be learning!" Offered a girl near the front.

"Nope!" Kuroi shouted, straightening up and slamming something onto the desk. "This is why." Holding up a bottle of sake up for everyone to see, she grinned deviously. The class went silent, all the murmurs and muttering stopped.

"Um.. Kuroi-sensei?" Miyuki, always the quiet one, spoke up. "Is it okay for you to.. share your alcohol with students?"

"Ahaha! Of course! It's not okay if I force them to drink it, but if they want to drink of their own accords, who cares?" She explained, digging through her drawers to get a glass. Walking over to her fellow gamer, she stood in front of Konata's desk. Pouring sake into the glass, she set it in front of the otaku, then stood up. "Can someone wake her up?"

The kid behind her leaned forwards, poking her in the back until she stirred.

"..nn.. nyaah, I need my rest.." Muttered the bluenette. Lifting her head drowsily, she blinked her eyes, seeing the glass in front of her. Kuroi bent down, lowering herself to Konata's level to look her in the eyes.

"Hey, Izumi. Don't sleep in class. I got you something to drink. You can thank me by emptying the glass." As she talked, Konata's eyes lazily glanced at the bottle, then the glass, then her teacher. With a shrug, she picked up the sake glass and drained it, her face contorting at the taste.

"Ugh.. this tastes terrible.." Konata put the glass down with a frown. "Thanks, though." The blonde teacher stood up, grabbing her sake and her glass, walking back to her desk.

"Haha! Anytime, Izumi, anytime."

Miyuki and Tsukasa cast worried looks towards their friend, who was resting her head on her hands and trying not to fall asleep. Most everybody else sat in silent shock.

 _"Was that illegal?"_ Went through most of their heads.

Konata just gazed at the chalkboard, trying not to fall asleep.

/-/

"Ah, lunch is finally here!" Konata exclaimed, flopping dramatically onto her desk in relief. "I'm so tired.."

Tsukasa and Miyuki connected their desks, grabbing a fourth one for their friend Kagami, who would undoubtedly join them. With an apologetic look, Miyuki watched their local otaku.

"Are you all right, Izumi-san? You drank some sake, I'm not sure how well you can take alcohol.. Do you feel unwell?" At the words, Konata lifted her head from the table, looking directly at Miyuki, smiling in her typical cat-like demeanor.

"Ah, I'm fine. Alcohol doesn't really affect me. I just don't like the taste too much, it has that disgusting aftertaste that I can't stand." Konata explained, her brows furrowing as she talked in a sagelike manner. Tsukasa nodded, sympathetic to the bluenette's case.

"I know, right? I had a really small sip of sake once because my mom offered it, but I couldn't get the taste out of my mouth for the rest of the night.." Tsukasa pursed her lips, frowning at the thought. "I don't know how people can drink entire bottles of sake.."

"Because they have nothing else to do with their life, that's what." Jumping at the familiar voice, Miyuki and Tsukasa looked at Kagami, who had quietly joined them. After they said hello, Kagami mimicked Konata, putting her arms on top of Konata's head instead of the desk.

"So, why are we talking about sake?" Kagami asked, wondering how they had gotten to this topic.

"Because Kuroi-sensei let me have a glass?" Konata responded, more of a question than a statement. She watched for Kagami's reaction, not disappointed at the expression on her girlfriend's face.

"What? You drank sake in class?" Surprise and shock mingled in Kagami's voice, morphing into worry. "Are you drunk? We should get you to the infirmary." With that, she took her arms off Konata's head, putting her hands on her shoulders instead.

"Nah, I'm fine here.. as long as I have my Kagamin, everything's alright.." Konata sighed almost dreamily, closing her eyes and leaning backwards into the tsundere. Kagami reluctantly stopped herself from hugging the adorable girl in her arms, knowing that she was in a public setting. Blushing lightly, she gestured and waved her hands to give them something to do besides touching.

"H-hey, Konata.. we're still in class.. you aren't usually this lovey-dovey in class.." Once the words left her mouth, her mind went to work. _"Hm. Maybe when she's under the effects of alcohol, she gets like this."_

"Is that wrong?" Konata looked up at her, the piercing green eyes stabbing into Kagami's heart. The girl looked like she was almost in tears, which was one thing that Konata only did in private. She never looked sad when she was with her friends or other people, just Kagami. Whimpering, she pushed herself up, leaning forwards and away from the purple-haired student, tears welling in her eyes. "I'm sorry.. I'll stop.."

"N-no, I-it's okay.. It's not wrong.." Kagami panicked to comfort the half-drunk otaku, cradling her and hugging her. Konata's eyes shined happily, and she was nearly purring as she melted into the embrace. Stroking the girl's hair, she looked up at Miyuki and Tsukasa, both of them sitting with amused smiles.

"Sorry.. I guess she forgot we were in public. Probably the effects of the alcohol." Sighing, she looked down at the girl in her arms. "How much did she have, anyways?"

"She drank a regular-sized glass.. but since she has such a small physique, it has affected her more than it would you or I." Miyuki told the two, glancing at Konata, who was humming contently. "It appears that she's more mellow and fragile.. At least, in your company."

"Earlier when she said she wasn't bothered by alcohol, she was acting normally. She didn't seem off until just now, when you came." Tsukasa noticed, staring at Kagami in an effort to connect the dots.

Kagami, unnerved by Tsukasa's unusually intent eyes, could feel her blush getting darker. "W-well, I guess she'll be fine.. If all she wants is to cuddle, I can do that."

The chatter between the friends continued as usual, with Konata sitting in Kagami's lap, off in her own world. The otaku threw in some strangely placid comments, ones that bore no references or mischievous intent, which surprised everyone. Every now and then she would close her eyes, obviously relaxing in Kagami's arms, and then she would open them after a while, looking up at her lover. Kagami noticed this, giving her girlfriend a smile every now and then. _"Wow, she's so.. docile.. Her eyes don't have any of that characteristic mischief that they usually do."_

"It's different being with Konata when she's like this." Miyuki thoughtfully stated, her head tilting slightly. "I find myself still trying to decipher a hidden meaning behind her words, even though they aren't hiding anything right now."

"Yeah, it's almost weird! Konata is always energetic and flirty, but now she just wants to cuddle with you, sis." Tsukasa smiled, a light blush on her face. "You two are really cute together!"

"H-hey, that's.. sort of true, I guess. Konata is pretty cute right now, huh.." Kagami looked down, for the hundreth time that day, at the small girl who was sleeping in her arms. She had drifted off some time after finishing her chocolate cornet, and she had been peacefully dozing through the conversation. "I hope she'll make it through class.. If she doesn't recover from the effects of the alcohol, she might make a scene.."

Konata stirred, muttering something and shifted, her body now sideways and pressed against her _pillow_ , saying something that gave Kagami an embarassed look and a red face. "..you, Kagamin.."

"Izumi-san is rather cute right now.." Miyuki looked with a smile at the two. "I don't know if she should stay at school though.. Whenever one gets affected by alcohol, it's usually better to just rest until they're sober and their personality is back to normal."

A new voice joined in the conversation. "Yeah, it might be better if she rests for today." Nanako Kuroi hid a smile at the reaction of the girls, the way they jumped and snapped their heads in her direction. _"It's like I'm a ninja!"_

"Hiiragi, why don't you take her home? You're her girlfriend, so I'm sure it's okay." She continued before the tsundere could protest. "I'll write a note to Sakuraba saying you're taking care of one of my students, who had to go home because of a medical condition."

"Medical condition? You're the one who gave her sake.." Kagami frowned, and everybody sweatdropped at the blunt statement.

"...You're right, it's my fault. But it's not a bad thing! What's she like when she's drunk?" Kuroi laughed it off, looking at her gaming partner's sleeping face.

"...Unusually friendly. All she wants to do is cuddle, apparently."

"Hahaha! Typical of Konata, she can't just be mainstream and turn into a pervert." Kuroi laughed loudly, walking away with a dismissive gesture. "Ah, take care of her Kagami. I'll deal with Sakuraba, and I'll have Tsukasa bring you your notes." The words sank in as the girls stared after her blankly.

"..Why do I feel like I was forced into this? From the start?" Kagami sighed. It was as if the blonde teacher planned everything out, from getting Konata drunk to making her go home with Kagami.

"How about we hang out at our house? Miyuki, you can come too!" Tsukasa smiled at her own suggestion.

"Sure, I'll be sure to bring something from the bakery. I'll head over there whenever I can."

"So, I guess we're hanging out today, huh.." Kagami sighed again. Things just seemed to happen, and she seemed to get involved in all of them, whether she wanted to or not.

 _"I didn't ask for this."_

/-/

Konata woke up. She felt a little warm inside. Opening her eyes and taking in the situation, she saw what had jolted her out of her sleep.

"...Kagami? What are you doing?"

Groaning, the purple-haired tsundere picked herself up off the ground, Konata stepping aside and helping her to her feet.

"...I tripped. What about it?" She said gruffly, not looking into Konata's emerald eyes.

"Are you okay?" Konata asked.

"...Huh?" Kagami stopped her sarcastic reply hearing the voice of concern.

"Are you okay?" Repeating the question, Konata looked up at her. For a brief, random moment, Kagami imagined the ahoge on the girl's head to bounce in sync.

"Oh.. uhh, I'm alright.. how about you?" She managed to get out, surprised at the special treatment. Konata wasn't one to worry about other people, unless it was a serious case.

"I'm fine.. Were you carrying me again?" The blue-haired girl tilted her head, her brows coming together.

"Yeah.. You fell asleep during lunch, so I'm taking you home. Tsukasa and Miyuki are going to meet us at my house."

"Oh.. Thanks." Konata sighed soberly, her lips forming a bothered line. "Sorry. For falling asleep a lot. It's probably a bother.."

"You're acting strange. Are you still drunk?" Kagami joked. "No, you aren't a bother. I don't mind helping you out. Don't worry about it, I'd do anything for you." As an afterthought, she added dismissively. "Not that I have a choice."

Konata gave Kagami a kiss on her cheek, smiling as she did. "Your _dere_ side is really sweet, Kagamin!"

Blushing redder than the girl across from her, Kagami rolled her eyes, and she started walking again. "We aren't getting anything done standing around. Come on." Konata hurried after her, jumping onto the girl's back and wrapping her legs around her waist, arms around her shoulders.

"I'll let you carry me!" Konata _offered_ , seeing a chance for a free ride and opportunity to make a jab at her best friend.

"Don't think you can take advantage of my kindness. I'll drop you." Threatened the tsundere, tilting her body to the side. Konata just shifted her weight opposite, staying on almost effortlessly.

"You love me too much to do that. Plus, I know how much you like carrying my small, frail body around! I'll let you enjoy it for now." Ended the small girl on a superior note. Kagami sighed in annoyance, walking in silence, secretly relishing the physical contact.

 _"Damn it Konata.. You don't have to be right all the time."_

/-/

A couple seconds after the words came out of Konata's mouth, her lavender-haired friend turned and acknowledged her question.

"Sorry, what? Say that again."

"What am I like? When I'm drunk?" Konata prompted, a smirk on her face. "Did I do anything weird? Naughty? Dirty?"

"Ha! Nah, you didn't do anything stupid. In fact, we should get you drunk more often. You're much easier to deal with." Kagami snickered, purposely sidestepping the question. Konata thought deeply about this.

"Did you take advantage of me while I was drunk?" Keeping a straight face was hard. Especially at moments like these. Konata managed it anyways, and it was worth it. "That isn't fair.. You could just ask next time.." Feigning a hurt look, she looked down at her shoes.

"W-what?! No, no that's not what I meant?" Kagami stammered, her hands flying in erratic gestures. "I didn't do anything to you, you didn't either, it was just different!" Konata perked up and grinned triumphantly.

"Heh Kagamin, you shouldn't let me turn the tides so easily like that. You had a chance, but then you let your guard down, then your guard shattered into pieces!" Konata brushed her lips against the girl's ear, whispering barely audibly. "I'll let you get me back later." She pulled away, giggling to herself.

Kagami wanted to be angry, but she just huffed and looked away. "One of these days, Konata, you're going to get it."

"Keep trying, Kagami. Continue your training, your efforts shall not be wasted."

"Shush. I **will** drop you."

"Yes, Kagami-sama."

/-/

Tadao heard someone at the door, and he put down his book, getting up and walking to the door.

 _"Now who could that be? Is school over already?"_

Opening the door, his eyebrow rose in surprise as Kagami greeted him, along with Konata, who was riding on her back.

"Oh, what are you two doing here? Shouldn't you still be in school?"

"Oh, well you see.."

][ ][

"So, Konata was intoxicated by her homeroom teacher?" Tadao confirmed, his brows coming together in concentration. Kagami nodded. "Is that legal?"

"All of the students wanted to know that too. For now, I'm just glad Konata is alright."

"Yeah.. I'm fine. Thank you for taking care of me Kagami, Tadao. I appreciate you being here to help me."

"Ahaha, don't mention it. We've all been there before, even Kagami and Tsukasa. Not as bad as their older sisters, though." Laughing, the man smiled to let them know he was joking.

"Matsuri and alcohol don't mix. If you ever see her with a drink, run away and don't let her catch you by yourself." Kagami suggested, who grinned and nodded.

"Ah, I'll keep that in mind. But is she okay by herself?" Curious, Konata looked towards the Hiiragis for an answer.

"Well, she usually ends up crying herself to sleep, but she never does anything dangerous."

The banter went on, discussions about alcohol, Nanako Kuroi, and other related topics. Eventually Tadao excused them and let them head up to Kagami's room to spend some time with each other.

"Ah, they really are good together. Konata really seems to bring out that calm side of Kagami.." Tadao smiled. "At least, most of the time."

/-/

Kagami stepped up to her room, urging the shortie inside. Closing the door gently behind her, she pointed to the bed. "Lie down." She ordered in a monotone. Konata raised an eyebrow, wanting to grin at the tsundere's slip up. Instead, she recoiled, taking on a fearful look.

"K-Kagamin, you can't! My.. my body isn't ready! I'll break!" Konata pretended to back away.

"Oh, shut your whining. As if I would want you and your kiddy body." Kagami ignored her act, still poinitng. Konata grinned, seeming to teleport next to her girlfriend and grab her in a hug.

"Ah, I'm hurt.. Do I not turn you on? What about all those passionate nights when you held me in your arms and I said-" She got no further, Kagami's voice cutting through her words and her hands grabbing her and picking her up.

"Gotcha!" Kagami smirked triumphantly, easily picking up Konata, effortlessly dropping off the protesting girl on the bed.

"Hey, that's not fair.. You can't do that!" Konata complained, her lips protruding in a pout, but Kagami had already turned away. She waited for a response, then realized she wouldn't get one.

"Aren't you going to violate me?" She asked in a cute voice. She giggled when her tsundere spluttered, pleading innocent with a bright red face.

"Be more thankful, I'm just making sure you rest." Kagami muttered after a moment of embarassed blabbering, pulling out a light novel.

"...Kagami, I feel fine. All those naps I took cured my status ailment!" Konata said, happily enough for Kagami to doubt the words coming out of her mouth. "Plus, I have never gotten a hangover. Once I drank almost an entire bottle of sake, and I felt perfectly fine in the morning!" Kagami was more surprised at this than her apparent immunity.

"An entire bottle?! What in the world possessed you to do that?" Kagami shouted after her brief shock. _"Can she even handle that much alcohol?"_

"My dad left out a bottle of sake on the table, and I decided to try some.. but I sort of kept drinking.." Konata rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. _"It tasted a lot better after the first cup!"_

"How old were you?" Asked the younger girl, making her voice as calm and casual as possible.

"Ehh.. I think 15? Three years ago." Not seeing the underlying danger, Konata continued in a relaxed and nonchalant voice.

"Konata, you shouldn't do this kind of crap! You're putting yourself in danger! You don't even eat correctly, you shouldn't be drinking that much alcohol! You shouldn't drink period." Kagami yelled, startling the girl on the bed. Lowering her volume, she let out a groan, a sigh, whatever you called the distressed sound that came from the Hiiragi twin.

"K-Kagami, that isn't fair.. I don't drink daily, I only did it that one night! Today was the first day in a couple years, and it wasn't even a lot.." She let her voice trail off upon seeing Kagami's face. She stopped talking and waited patiently.

"You can't go and do whatever you want! You have a human body, you know? Not to mention a small one. If you go around drinking and eating nothing but junk food, you're going to get sick and-"

Konata's face suddenly went from one of patience to annoyance as she waved her arms to her friend's attention. "Hey, hey, can I say something? Please?" Kagami pressed her lips together, not saying anything. "All you're telling me is about how I'm not taking care of myself and irresponsible. You aren't even listening to me. It was my first chance to try sake, I wasn't about to pass up on it! I wasn't planning to get drunk that night, and I didn't know you'd make this big of a deal with it."

The otaku stopped, took in a deep breath, before she kept going. "What I'm trying to say is, this isn't something I do every day. That one night was my first taste of alcohol, and it isn't something I've done for three years. It isn't fair for you to be getting mad at me over this.. please, Kagami.."

"I need to be mad about this because you're taking it as if it isn't a big deal! You do whatever the hell you want with your own body, whether it's unhealthy or dangerous or whatever! You need to think before you do things! Think about our feelings for once. How do you think we'd feel if you got really sick or hurt yourself or ended up doing something you'd regret for the rest of your life?!"

"You'd be mad at me, right?!" Konata yelled, surprising herself as much as the other girl. She wasn't the type to get angry; She sighed frustratedly before continuing in a much more quiet, almost sad voice. "Whenever I do something that ends up with someone getting hurt, they push me away. They get mad at me, they tell me to leave, they don't even let me apologize. I don't see why it should matter if I get hurt. Everybody will just get mad, they'll tell me to leave, they won't listen to my apologies. It's always been like that, since elementary school when I accidentally.." Konata paused, her words catching in her throat. She tried to laugh, but it turned into a broken sob. "Wow.. I guess I really have messed up a lot. Now that I think of it, every month I ended up doing something stupid, ha.. haha.."

Her memories and her feelings were speaking for her now. She heard her own words, felt their sting.

"Not a lot of people have really stuck around with me for more than a month.. Not even my mother, but it's not her fault." She added bitterly, a tear running down her cheek. "There's my dad, there was one girl in middle school who was my friend for a year, and there's you guys. A grand total of what? One.. two.. like, twelve people who didn't throw me away after their free trial expired!" Konata tried to laugh and smile, only succeeding in looking miserable, wiping away her tears. She was brutally honest to everyone around her, but being true to herself.. Kagami knew that she was trying to play it off as unimportant, and it wasn't working.

"S-sorry.. if you don't want to hear about it.. I'm not making it up or anything.. but I'm not trying to make you feel bad.." Konata looked into her lover's face, her eyes full of everything from regret to conflict to sorrow. However, a barrier went up around the fragile girl, but Kagami could see through the nervous laugh and dismissive tone. "Uhh.. I went off topic.. heh.. I forgot what we were talking about, but if you want me to do something, then I'd gladly do it for you. Just tell me and I-"

"Stop." Kagami seemed to appear next to Konata, pulling her into a hug and holding the warm, small girl in her arms. "I shouldn't have gotten mad at you. I was getting overprotective and I was getting angry because I thought you were endangering yourself. But it was wrong of me to yell, you did nothing wrong." Kagami broke away from the hug, still holding Konata around the shoulders, but instead looking into the emerald eyes, which were glistening with sadness .

"I know you don't do it on purpose. Being annoying is something you can't help, but it's something that we love about you. All of us, not just me. You're the oddball in our group, but you're the one who manages to keep us all linked together, even if it's against our will."  
"You're the one who deserves more. People push you away when you make mistakes, and it hurts to see you accept that. It hurts to hear you talk about it, I only want you to be happy, **we** only want you to be happy.."

Kagami didn't resist the tears from blurring her eyes. She blinked them away but they didn't stop, so she ignored them and kept going.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all of that.. without dedicated friends, without a mom.. You've had it harder than all of us, you know that? You've been through the worst, but you work the hardest, just for the sake of keeping the people around you happy.."  
"I'm going to be there for you. I won't let you hurt yourself anymore about this. I won't push you away, I won't reject you. If you let me, I'll be there for you every time you need me.. okay?"

Kagami had barely finished speaking when Konata threw herself into Kagami, letting out heart-breaking whimpers and quiet sobs. Kagami held onto her, running fingers through blue hair, listening as the girl poured out her emotions.

"Kagami.. th-thank you! I'm sorry if.. I'm weird and emotional and stuff.. but.." Konata sniffled, trying to control her breathing. "I felt really happy when you said that.. you would be there for me.. So thank you.."

"I'll take care of you forever, Konata. Whether you need my help or not."

Konata's sobs had died down, her whimpers had stopped, and she had reverted to nearly inaudible humming, taking in the warm arms around her and the warm heart offered to her. _"Kagami said she'll take care of me.. that makes me really happy!"_

/-/

Tsukasa and Miyuki stood side to side, waiting outside the elder twin's door.

"Konata seems so fragile when she talks about her past.. I hate to see her in such a sad mood." Tsukasa told the pinkette, a sad look on her face. Miyuki responded with a nod and she put a hand on the younger Hiiragi's shoulder.

"She puts up such a convincing facade when she's with others. Seeing her vulnerable like this really makes me sad.. Although I don't mean to make light of this situation, it really goes to show how deep she's gotten into our hearts. It's almost as if her mood determines ours!" Miyuki stated thoughtfully, a smile working its way onto her face.

"Kagami really knows how to deal with her. She can calm Konata no matter the situation. Isn't that just romantic?"

"Y-yeah.. should we wait here until they're done?"

"Yes, let's not ruin the moment."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Couple of things.. Changing transitions, instead of confusing line breaks and random changes in scenery, there's now a /-/ symbol thing. For some reason, I can't just put three dashes or slashes, fanfiction keeps breaking it . Also, I'm still unsure if Konata or Kagami, mostly Kagami, are out of character. I need feedback! Reviews! :D**

 **I have a great idea for another story, I'll try to keep this one updated but I will also start work on that. It's Konami, don't worry, but it'll have some one-sided Konata x Misao with twists, whaddaya think?**

 **Anyways, reviews are appreciated! If you review with a question or something that can be expanded on, it might be featured in the end-show! Follows, favorites, PMs, reviews make me jump with joy! Thanks for reading ^.^**

Sym: And we're back! Hello everybody, today we'll be leaving the two lovebirds alone, so we'll have the elder Hiiragi sisters join us!

Inori: Thanks for letting us have some time on the show.

Matsuri: Thanks for letting us be fillers since Kagami is busy seducing her girlfriend.

Inori: So cynical, Matsuri.. you could at least keep it to yourself.

Sym: Ahaha, don't worry about it.. I have plenty of experience being a filler, so I know how you feel. *Sigh*

Matsuri: Oh, a fellow side character?! I take back what I said, we'll be great friends!

Inori: You really change your mind quickly..

Sym: Never a bad trait to have. It makes for some great moments!

Matsuri: And when Tsukasa is around, it makes some great **moements**! *grins happily*

Sym: That was a good one!

Matsuri: Got it from Kagami's girlfriend. She really makes some good points, you know?

Inori: Konata is a handful. She's cute and great to be around, sure, but she is a lot to deal with. We don't need you becoming like her, Matsuri. You're already bad enough without Konata's influence.

Sym: Having two of Konata around would definitely be.. interesting. I must agree though, Konata is great and all, but she's unique to the point where it'd be hard to deal with two of her.

Inori: Right?

Sym: Right.

Sym: That'll be all for this section, so we'll see you in the next chapter! Ask us stuff!

Matsuri: Ask us about embarrassing stuff! Like what Kagami does in her room at night!


	9. Chapter 9: Casual Competition

"Do you really want to know that much about what you're like when you're drunk?"

"Of course! Don't you want to know what you're like when you're drunk?"

"No. I'm not planning on drinking alcohol anytime soon, so it doesn't matter to me."

"I had a great idea! We should all get drunk and set up a camera. That way we can find out what the four of us are like!"

"That's terrible. We aren't all going to get wasted just because you decided it would be a good idea."

"How about we set up a camera just so that if we **do** get drunk, I have footage?"

"It's so easy to tell that you just want blackmail material, Konata."

Konata and Kagami went back and forth over the issue, while Tsukasa and Miyuki sat there giggling at their friends.

"I'm glad we can still get together like this. No matter how many forms of entertainment pop up, there's still a feeling of camaraderie I get from sharing company with you three." Miyuki smiled sincerely, and Tsukasa nodded enthusiastically.

"Camaraderie?" Tsukasa stared blankly at her friend. Miyuki was about to explain her vocabulary, but Konata popped up in between them, grinning.

"Ah, camaraderie, what a powerful word. It means friendship or something, right?" She pointed out with her finger held up, imitating a teacher. Kagami snorted derisively.

"You can't sound smart if you use the words _or something_ and ask if you were correct. It has the opposite effect, genius."

"I'm pretty smart! Just not in the forms of academics, I have practical smarts!" Konata pouted, crawling up to the tsundere and putting her face extremely close. As her girlfriend instinctively leaned backwards, Konata pushed her and laid on top of the flattened girl.  
"Got you!"

"Hey, what'd you do that for? I'm tempted to just pick you up and kick you out of my room, you know that?"

"Kagamin says means things, but I know she would never do them! So _tsun_!"

"Oh, really?"

Kagami smirked and bumped the petite girl off of her. Konata was then lifted up by her arms and carried towards the door.  
"H-hey, Kagamin, are you really-" Konata panicked, waving her limbs in some sort of escape attempt. Her friend shushed her, placing her outside and closing the door.

"There we go. I followed through with my promise." Kagami smiled at the door as if she was talking to it.

"Kagami is bullying me because I'm small!" Dramatic sobbing came from the door. Kagami pretended not to notice, instead sitting down and picking up her light novel. Tsukasa looked between the two, not sure of what to do.

"Um.. should we let Kona-chan back in?" She asked, already shifting her weight to stand up.

"Nah. She can stay outside for a bit. It's not hurting her." Kagami said off-handedly, chuckling.

/-/

Matsuri ascended the stairs, a chilled drink in hand. She had taken a break from _studying_ (she and Konata shared the same study methods), and she had went to grab something from the refrigerator. Coming up to her room, she noticed the bluenette standing outside the door of Kagami's room. She walked over and placed her arm on the head of blue hair.

"Hey, Konata. Why are you out here? I thought it'd be Tsukasa and Miyuki who would be kicked out, eh?" Matsuri chuckled, suggestively nudging Konata, who's face turned slightly pink as she looked up at the taller girl, feigning annoyance.

"I told Kagami she wouldn't carry out her threats, and she put me outside!" Konata complained, grabbing onto the girl's shirt and sinking to her knees dramatically.  
"How do you live with such an abusive sister?!" Matsuri laughed for a bit, then she regained her composure with a wicked grin.

"I've got an idea!" Matsuri grabbed Konata, pushing the girl into her room and closing the door.

/-/

The three girls inside Kagami's room shared a laugh, having temporarily forgotten their missing friend.

"Wasn't that stinky?" Tsukasa giggled. Miyuki just nodded with a smile on her face. As they went back to their activities, Kagami remembered something.

"Konata." She said, her head moving up from her book. Tsukasa looked at her blankly.

"Huh? But Kona-chan is.." A lightbulb went off above the girl's head. "Oh yeah, Kona-chan is.. still outside?"

"Did she really wait that long..?" Muttered the tsundere, putting down her book and standing up. "I'll go get her."

Kagami opened her door, expecting to see the otaku standing there. "Hey, you can.. come.. Konata?" The girl had disappeared off to somewhere. Confused, Kagami stepped outside and looked around. "Where is she?"

"M-Matsuri, no!" Konata's voice sounded from Matsuri's room. Kagami frowned. _"What?"_

"Remember what I told you? Are you disobeying me, Ko-na-ta...?" Matsuri dragged out the name, followed by a loud.. moan?

" _Mn_ , Matsuri-neesan- _Ahh!_ N-no, it's cold- _Ahh!_ "

Kagami couldn't take it anymore, and she stormed into the room with a fire in her eyes. " **Matsuri! What the hell are you doing?** " Yelling, she walked around the bed, seeing her sister sitting on top of the bluenette.

"Hm? Oh, Kagami. Your girlfriend wanted some of this." Matsuri held up a can of soda.  
"I sort of spilt it on her neck by accident, so she was complaining.. What?"

"..." Speechless, Kagami spluttered and gestured for a bit before she went silent.

"What? I was thirsty and she happened to be right there." Konata explained. "Uh.. do you have a problem with this?"

"Of course I have a problem with this! You can't just.. just.. gah!" Kagami groaned loudly.

"Is the problem with me calling her _neesan_ or with me sharing her drink?" Konata squirmed her way out from Matsuri, jumping up and hugging her girlfriend. She stumbled and gasped when Kagami grabbed her and yanked her along, stalking briskly out of the room.

"We're going to have a talk." Kagami ordered, ignoring the otaku's excuses and protests.

"K-Kagamin, it was a joke! Calm down.."

Matsuri chuckled, putting her drink on the desk. "Ah, that was fun.. I hope Kagami doesn't hurt her too bad."

/-/

Konata was practically thrown into the room, and she tucked into a roll, hiding behind Miyuki. She was followed by Kagami, who couldn't be fooled. "Hey. I see you."

"W-what are you talking about, Kagami-san?" Said Miyuki's voice.

"Not you Miyuki, I'm talking to the idiot behind you."

"Um, Kagami-san.. that wasn't.." Miyuki started, looking side to side, trying to see behind her without actually turning around.

"That wasn't me, that was Izumi-san!" Miyuki's voice came again, and Konata suddenly fell over in laughter, giggling madly.  
"Bwahaha, that was good! Yuki-chan so _**moe**_ , the way she looked around!"

"Yes, yes, that was very good. Come here." Kagami walked over to the bed and sat on the edge, beckoning Konata. Konata grinned and complied.

"Okay, okay, but shouldn't Tsukasa and Miyuki leave first? They're too innocent to see this, right?" Subject girls blushed and looked at each other, suddenly coming up with an incredibly interesting topic to discuss.

Kagami took Konata's arm, pulling the bluenette towards her and sitting her down on her lap. Kagami wrapped her arms around Konata and put her chin on the girl's shoulder, whispering softly and feeling the small girl shiver instinctively. "So, what were you doing with my older sister?"

"Uh.. we were playing a prank.."

"What was the goal of your prank?"

"..." The silence prompted the younger girl to blow gently into Konata's ear, causing her to flinch and tense up.

"Hmm?"

"T-to make you.. jealous.." Konata stammered, uncomfortable with being passive in this situation. Kagami couldn't help but grin, seeing the hunter become the hunted.

"Did it work?"

"I don't know.." Konata dragged out her words, and she gasped quietly as she felt a warm feeling on the tip of her ear.

"Take a guess." Teased Kagami, running her tongue over the tip of Konata's ear. _"She's weak to being teased_ _ **and**_ _on her ears? That's important information, right there."_

"Nn.. yah, s-sure.." Konata mumbled, her legs fidgeting. _"Kagami is picking up some of my skills! This is good and bad! It's also cute, in some way.."_

"Alright! Thanks." Kagami said at a regular volume of voice, loud enough for Tsukasa and Miyuki to pick up. She pushed the blushing Konata to her feet, standing up behind her.  
"Everything is forgiven!" Sitting down next to Tsukasa once again, she motioned for Konata to join them, and she did so with reluctance, looking away and desperately trying to hide her blush.

][ ][

"What do you do in your spare time, Yuki-chan?" Konata asked out of curiosity.

"Well, I'm usually studying and learning about new things. When I'm not doing that, I enjoy conversing with others, including you three and my mother. I also help out around the house, read books, and go out to the city for shopping and various other things."

"Whoa! You do a lot of stuff!" Konata commented. "Can you cook?"

"I can cook basic dishes, like rice and noodles, but.. I lack experience to cook advanced dishes." Miyuki admitted reluctantly, as if it was an embarrassing secret.

"I have a really good idea!" Konata yelled, jumping to her feet.  
"We should have a contest!" Tsukasa looked at her, eyebrows together in thought.

"Contest? Will we be cooking?"

"We won't be cooking, they will!" Konata stood next to the airhead, pointing across the table.

/-/

"Cooking contest? That sounds fun." Miki smiled at the girls, approving their idea.  
"Go ahead. As long as you clean up after, and make sure Kagami doesn't break anything."

"Seriously, mom. I won't blow anything up, it's not like this is chemistry or anything." Kagami muttered, head hung at her own mother's lack of confidence in her.

"Don't worry, Kagami!" Konata consoled the disheartened tsundere.  
"With me guiding you, you'll be such a good cook you'll rival Tsukasa!"

"Who said I wanted you guiding me?" Kagami joked.

"Wow.. that stings.." Konata mumbled, crossing her hands over her heart. She perked up and ran to Miyuki, hugging the innocent girl tightly.  
"But it's okay, because Miyuki will accept me! Do you want me to be your cooking instructor, Yuki-chan?"

"U-um, sure Izumi-san.. I'd be honored to accept your help."

"I was joking, Konata. You can-" Kagami started, but she was interrupted.

"No, no, Kagamin, you made your choice! I like Yuki-chan more now!" Konata smiled innocently, still wrapped around the meganekko. Kagami, hiding her surprise, turned away and shrugged.

"Okay. Tsukasa is probably a better choice anyways-"

"No! I took it too far! Please accept me Kagami-sama!" Konata released her grip on Miyuki, instead running to Kagami and bowing deeply.

"What if it's too late?"

"My body is yours! Use it as you will!" Konata stated, her hands already grabbing at her shirt tail..

"No, hey, stop, I was joking! Don't do that!"

Miyuki looked at Tsukasa, smiling at the girl's patient expression. "Looks like you're used to them."

"Yeah.. Looks like you're partnered with me. Let's do our best, Miyuki-san!"

/-/

Kagami stared at the ingredients in front of her. _"Curry powder, flour, oil, spices.."_  
"How am I supposed to make curry with these? Do I just mix it together?"

"Eh.. sort of? This is to make the curry sauce, so the first thing we do is fry it, so put about this much in.."

][ ][

"Use a little more spice than that, otherwise there'll be no taste."

"How do you know how much spice to put in instinctively?"

"Experience and intuition, Kagamin."

"Is that enough?"

"No. Try again."

][ ][

"What should we do for the meat and vegetables, Tsukasa?"

"Hm.. We can use beef with pepper, carrots, and something green.."

"Green? How about green onions?"

"That should work. Green onions and leeks would be good. Do you want to cook them or use them raw?"

"Is it better to cook them, or use them raw?"

"Well, there's more texture if they're raw, but it can somewhat take away from the dish as a whole. I think we should cook them this time."

/-/

Miki sat down at the table, glancing sidelong at her eldest daughter. Inori met her eyes with a smile.

"Hey, mother. Are you a guinea pig too?"

"Guinea pig? We're just sampling some curry, you make it sound so dangerous, Inori!"

"Hey, when Kagami is in the kitchen, you never know.." Her voice trailed off dramatically, and her violet eyes glinted with mischief as they met Kagami's angry stare.

"Hey." Konata looked over, a grin on her face. "You insult Kagami's cooking, but also you insult my teaching."

"Now now, calm down.. We're all sisters here, right?" Inori chided, looking between Konata and Kagami with a stern glance. She almost flinched as she felt daggers of ice pierce her heart.

"You started it, you stupid.."

"Hey, let's try some of this curry, that's the reason we're out here, right girls?" Miki cut in and drew the attention to herself.

"Oh! Good job Miki-sama, a good tank always draws the aggro!" Konata cheered and gave the woman a cheesy thumbs up.

][ ][

"Inori will judge the curry noodles, and Miki-san will judge the curry rice. Then they'll switch and try the other dish, and both agree on a winner."

Konata explained the rules in a rather serious and official voice.

"What happens if we can't agree on a winner?" Inori wanted to know. Konata stared at her for a second, before shrugging her shoulders.

"Oh, just rock paper scissors."

Kagami sweatdropped. _"You sounded so official, but then.."_

"Itadakimasu!" Miki and Inori gave the traditional _Thanks for the meal!_ before they started eating.

"..."

"..."

"These noodles aren't bad. They're better than what you find in the restaurants!"

"I like this curry rice! The curry sauce is really good, and there's just enough flavor without taking away from the dish."

Kagami felt a blush creep onto her face, with her mother's praise. Nobody noticed, as all eyes were turned to the judges as they switched plates.

"..."

"..."

"Yeah, this is actually pretty good. The curry is great!"

"The noodles are good, and I like how the vegetables add color without taking away from the dish."

After sampling both dishes, mother and daughter turned to each other and tried to discuss which one would be their winner. It was obvious that the former was doing their best to seem _professional_ and _skilled_ as a judge, with all the technical details she was picking out.

"We've agreed on a winner! Both of us like both dishes, but the curry noodles are the victor." Inori stated, watching both groups for a reaction. She got it when Tsukasa beamed at Miyuki, and the tall pink-haired girl smiled widely.

"Miyuki-san, we did it!"

"Yes! Thanks to your help, Tsukasa-chan."

"The rice is good, but the noodles have the benefit of looking much more complex and having more texture and stuff like that, so even though the rice tasted equally as good, we thought the noodles were more skilfully prepared." Miki stated. Kagami looked crestfallen, but Konata jumped onto her back with an enthusiastic cheer.

"Don't worry Kagamin, you did good! Even though we couldn't beat Tsukasa and Miyuki, you made something edible! Aren't you proud?" Konata nuzzled her face into the tsundere's neck, who looked away with a vibrant blush on her cheeks.

"I'm proud, don't get me wrong. Maybe now I can cook something besides plain rice."

"Yeah! Now you can make food for me, and you won't starve when I'm working!"

"Why should I cook when I can have you do it?"

"Because it's moe! Moe!"

"Hey, hey.."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **We're back! Apologies for the lack of content and the shorter chapter, I have started school again and I got too excited while writing my other story, so I've sort of been catching up on games and music.. I also couldn't get this story to be anywhere near the length of my previous chapters, I kept writing and writing, but for all these days its still my shortest chapter!  
TLDR, my apologies about the delayed content, about the shorter chapter, and check out my other story Lucky Star: Lost, Found, Returned if you like Misao! Anyways, that's it!** **Stay tuned for more fluff, I'm going to hop back into writing after breakfast!**

Sym: It's been a while since our last session, but welcome back to the chapter's end, everybody! Today, we are having Matsuri and Konata join us today!

Matsuri: You know, it feels great to be more than a side character.

Konata: Right?

Sym: So today you two played a prank using Kagami's mind against her.. You tried to make her think that you two were having a certain kind of fun, am I right?

Konata: Yeah, that was **amazing**! Kagami totally fell for it when I started making all those sounds!

Matsuri: Oh man, did you see the look on her face? I couldn't, because my life was flashing before my eyes!

Sym: Anyways, this is just a _what if_ question.. Matsuri, what do you think of being in a relationship with Konata?

Matsuri: Relationship with this squirt? That's fine by me. We get along.

Konata: Ah, uh.. who would be the dominant one?

Matsuri: Me, of course. It's much easier for me to pin you down and-

Konata: *gesturing wildly* N-no, no, not that.. I mean, that too, but not really..

Matsuri: I was messing with you, Konata. But I would be the dominant one in general.

Konata: How is it that I'm always the passive one, even though I have a bolder personality.. *sigh*

Sym: It's strange, but it has something to do with how your emotional side is so nice and polite and caring.

Sym: Thank you for joining us today, we'll see you in the next chapter! Please leave reviews and whatnot with questions, comments, suggestions, feedback, all that stuff! All will be answered and replied to, maybe in this segment!

Matsuri: See you!

Konata: Good bye!


	10. Chapter 10: Preparations

"Eh? She's my favorite character!"

"Really? Ifrit is okay in my opinion.." Konata sweatdropped as her father leaned forwards across the table.

"No way!" Sojiro argued, a determined flame in his eyes. "Ifrit has everything, all in one _super cute_ looking girl! She's a delicate little sister, an unforgiving leader, and a kickass fire spirit!"

"I guess, but you know I'm more a fan of tsunderes, so I like Yamai and Diva much more.. It's my personal bias, but I do like Ifrit. She's really cute!" Konata agreed, calming her father down a bit.

"Right? She has the long pink hair, the white and black ribbons, the red eyes, and that ahoge.. So cute!" Sojiro dreamt, a happy expression on his face. Konata stood up and backed away nervously.

"I'm going to leave before you start looking at me weirdly.." Konata said, her own ahoge swaying back and forth.

"My own daughter has no trust in me.. What a tragic life I live.."

/-/

Konata closed the door to her room with a sigh. "As much as I love you, dad, it's dangerous to be around you for any long period of time." She walked over to her computer desk, sitting down with a satisfied expression.

"I have nothing to do, so I should log in to the MMO! I need to get all my dailies complete, then maybe I'll ask the guild if anyone wants to get a party going.."

 _Click. Tap tap tap. Click click._

"Ah, sensei is online."

 **[||]**

 **Konakona: What's up, sensei?**

 **Nanakon: Hey Izumi! Time to kill, gonna go equipment farming**

 **Konakona: For rare drops or materials?**

 **Nanakon: prob materials, but I want rare drops too so I'm going over to the new area, the Thundercloud Ravine**

 **Konakona: whoa, you sure? I'll come with, the monsters there are super powerful, I almost died trying to fight a common area mob**

 **Nanakon: srs? we should be fine though, us two have good sustained dps. i want to get the rare monster that drops the Blue-steel alloy stuff, it makes really good weapons**

 **Konakona: I just need the exp, but if we can get rare loot that's great! should we get some of our guildies to help us, to make it easier?**

 **Nanakon: nah, we'll be fine. If we have trouble, let's call in a healer or a mage to support us, unless we run into a boss we shouldn't need it**

 **Konakona: K. I'll grab a teleport crystal and head over to you.**

 **Nanakon: Is your homework done?**

 **Konakona: No, sensei.. but its the weekend, I'll do it when i have time.**

 **Nanakon: oh okay that's fine.. this time. Just because I need a meatshield, you can stay online**

 **Konakona: Thank you sensei.. I'm honored..**

 **Nanakon: hey, christmas is coming up eh? got any plans?**

 **Konakona: not yet, idk what my friends are gonna do, and my work is gonna be empty because everyone is with their families**

 **Nanakon: do you celebrate with your family?**

 **Konakona: sometimes, but not at christmas, i usually have other people to hang out with.**

 **Nanakon: haha, your poor father. he must be heartbroken. Well, if you don't have anything to do, come hang out with me and I'll buy you a drink, we can chill at the bar**

 **Konakona: I'll keep it in mind, sensei, but is that okay?**

 **Nanakon: nobody follows the drinking law in japan**

 **Konakona: point taken. let's go, I'm ready**

 **[||]**

As Konata subconsciously managed her avatar, she thought to herself about the upcoming holiday.  
"Hm.. Christmas.. Kagami and the others probably have plans, I wonder if I'm invited.."  
"This is the first Christmas I'm spending with them since I got with Kagami.. I want to do something nice for them.."

Several hours later, Konata looked at the clock and sweatdropped at the time. _"It's so late.. I'm going to hate myself in the morning.."_  
Typing out a message to her partner, Konata logged out and turned off her computer. _"Better get some sleep. Need to go shopping tomorrow."_

/-/

 **-The Next Morning-**

 _December 19, Saturday_

Konata stretched, reaching her arms above her head. With a tired moan, she turned over and buried her face in her pillow. "Uwaah, I'm so tireeeeed.."

Slowly, she shifted her leg closer to the edge of the bed, fighting against the urge to sleep in.  
"Shouldn't have stayed up late with Kuroi-sensei.."

Going through her morning routine, Konata gradually cleansed the fatigue out of her system, and she bounded out the door with a spring in her step, surprising her cousin sitting at the table.

"Bye Yu-chan! I'm going Christmas shopping, make sure you get something for Minami!"

"Bye onee-chan! .. W-wait, what?"

As Konata stepped off the train and into the city, she realized she had forgotten something very important.

"I don't know what to get them. Huh.. shoot.."

Slipping her way out of the crowd, Konata reached into her bag and grabbed her cell phone. _"I wonder why I brought this with me.. Oh well, I guess it's a good thing."_

"Hey, Kagami!"

"Oh, what's up Konata? Are you gonna ask me about the homework?"

"Do you want me to ask you about the homework?"

"Okay, what do you want?"

"Heh heh! Well, I was going shopping and I was wondering if you wanted to join me. You can bring Tsukasa if she wants to come."

"Ah, I can't right now. I'm sort of busy.. maybe another time. You can call Miyuki if you want, I haven't heard from her."

"Oh.. alright.. I'll call Miyuki then."

"Mm 'kay, see you."

"See you."

Konata hung up the phone, feeling a little pang of sadness. _"I really was hoping she would come.. Oh well, I'll ask Yuki-chan."_

/-/

Konata paid the saleswoman, thanking her and taking the two cups of _amazake_. With a smile, she walked over to her companion and handed her one. "Here you go Miyuki! I got us some sweet sake. Thanks for coming."

"No problem Izumi-san. It's always fun to be with you, and I too need to complete my Christmas shopping." Miyuki smiled endearingly, accepting the drink with a polite thank you.

"Ah, straight to the point as always. I want to get something for Kagami and Tsukasa and you, but I don't know what." Konata chatted idly as the two friends walked down the street, side by side.

"Well, Tsukasa likes things that seem comfortable or related to cooking, so I was thinking about getting her something soft, like clothes or pillows." Miyuki explained. "Kagami likes books and sweets, but she seems like she would accept any gift you gave her, seeing it's within reason."

"Ohh, you're good at this whole present thing. What do you like, Yuki-chan?" Konata prompted, already filing the information for later.

"Me? Hm.. Well, anything I suppose. There's nothing that stands out in terms of desire, so I'm usually given things like clothes or food or other nice things."

"Clothes, food, and other nice things huh? That's deep." Konata chuckled, tugging her friend towards a store. "Come on, this store looks like it has fluffy things! We could get something for Tsukasa."

/-/

Miyuki browsed the store, scanning through the wares. She wanted to get something that Tsukasa would like..

Her gaze passed over countless objects, all of which she deemed unsatisfactory. One could say it was unnerving, how critical and dismissive her eyes were. Nothing was good enough for the girl with pink hair.

Her eyes lit up as they came to a stop on something she fancied. With a gasp, she snatched it and held it up in front of her. _"Perfect!"_

"Izumi-san? I've found something that I think Tsukasa would like." Called out the meganekko, moving in the direction of her friend.

"What is it?" Konata suddenly blanked, her mouth dropping in surprise. ".. Whoa, I just had the perfect idea!"

"E-eh? Wait, what?" Miyuki asked, not sure if her friend was talking about the sweater she was holding. Konata didn't react, her mind spinning to polish the idea. "Um.. Izumi-san?"

".. .. .. Hm? Oh, Yuki-chan. I was just thinking, gotta make sure I have the idea down and everything." Konata grinned slyly.  
"Oh yeah, that sweater is really nice! Tsukasa really likes things like this." Konata poked and touched the sweater, nodding at her appraisal. "Let's see.. high quality materials, good elemental resistances, valid as a vanity appearance item.. Good find, Miyuki-san!" Konata gave the girl a thumbs up.

Miyuki smiled. _"I believe she just said it was well-crafted, stylish, and functional. I'm starting to get used to her way of phrasing things.."_

/-/

Konata and Miyuki left the shop, tossing their empty cups in a trash bin. The bluenette pulled up her mental map of the area. "Miyuki-san, can we go that way? There's stores I want to check out."

"Go ahead, I'll follow you."

Konata dashed off towards her goal, and her friend followed at a considerably slower pace.

][ ][

Miyuki caught up to Konata, who had wandered into a jewelry store. The pinkette had gotten held up trying to avoid a crowd, and she had lost sight of Konata for a couple nervous moments. _"I guess it's a curse and a blessing for Izumi-san to be so small and.."_

Noticing the otaku staring at something in a display, Miyuki went to her side and looked at the object of interest. _"A necklace?"_

"Did you want this, Izumi-san?" Miyuki's question startled the girl out of her trance.  
"It is very beautiful, I think it would look well on you."

"No.. Kagami.. I need this for her!" Konata muttered.

 _"Oh, shit.. look at that price tag.."_

Konata sighed, turning away and trudging away with dampened spirits. Miyuki knew what had deterred the girl.  
"Izumi-san, allow me. I can afford to buy this for you, it's not a problem-"

"But if you buy it for me, it won't really be a present from me. Right?" Konata made a bitter smile, and Miyuki frowned but saw the truth in this statement. "I can afford this, but even if I work overtime, I can't save up enough yen in under a week."

"How much yen do you have right now?" She prompted, not giving up.

"About half as much as the price of this thing.. I'll just find something else to get for Kagami.."

"Well, I'm going to buy this necklace and you can pay me back in the future." Miyuki said with a note of finality.

"Miyuki-san, it's okay, I really don't-"

"Izumi-san!" Miyuki interrupted, and Konata went quiet. It wasn't every day that Miyuki put her foot down about something. "I want to do this for you. You're my friend, what are friends for? I'll buy the necklace, and you can repay me in the future if that's what you want to do."

"..." Konata mulled over the offer, which was less of an offer and more of a demand. As she did, Miyuki talked to the owner of the store and told him to reserve the necklace for her. "Fine, but we're splitting the cost of the-"

"No, let me pay full price. After all, you need some yen to buy the rest of your gifts, right?" Konata sighed, realizing this was the truth.

" _Fuah_.. you're right. Thank you for doing this, Miyuki-san, I really can't thank you properly.."

"This is my way of saying thank you for being a wonderful friend, Izumi-san! Even though you have your quirks, you are a great person to be around and every moment with you is priceless." Genuinely, the pink-haired girl smiled warmly at Konata, who felt her face warming up as she looked at the selfless soul in front of her.

"Miyuki-san, you're amazing, you know that?" Konata beamed, her emerald eyes shining with happiness.

/-/

Konata dropped tiredly onto her bed, exhaling with relief. " _Haa_ , I'm so tired.." Rolling around for a bit, she then sighed and slowly sat up. "Can't sleep yet.. gotta make dinner."

Sleepily, she left her room and trudged down the stairs, calling out a greeting as she passed her father, who was sitting at the dinner table reading a newspaper like he usually did.

"Hey, Konata. What's up?"

"Kitchen. Making dinner." Sojiro looked up at the vague answer, frowning as he watched his daughter.

"Can you come out here a sec?" He instructed rather than asked.

Konata turned towards him, squinting at him. _"Did I do something?"_  
"Mm, what's up?" Konata asked, looking at him suspiciously.

"Have a seat. Just relax." Sojiro instructed, watching as his daughter gingerly complied. Standing up, he walked towards the kitchen. "I'm cooking today."

".. Eh? No, it's fine.. I can cook." Konata protested, already standing up again, but her father shot her a stern glance and she fell back into her seat.

"I can still cook, I practice once in a while to make sure my skills aren't getting rusty." His face softened. "Are you feeling alright? If you're tired, you should go up and sleep for a bit."

"Yeah, dad, I'm alright.. let me cook?" Trying one more time, she felt her hopes crushed at her answer.

"Don't tire yourself out. If you're feeling exhausted, rest for a little bit. Let me make dinner today." Putting his foot down, Sojiro smiled at his daughter. "You're my daughter, you know? It's still okay if I do something for you once in a while."

"Thanks, dad.." Konata mumbled loud enough for him to hear. She stood up, stretching her arms over her head. "I'll go take a nap.. wake me when dinner's ready."

"Ah, that girl.. She doesn't think she needs me anymore. Well, I'd better do my best while she still does." As Konata ascended the stairs to her room, Sojiro chuckled to himself as he rummaged through the cupboard. "I just hope she's feeling alright.. People do get sick around this time of year."

/-/

The Hiiragi household was in a mellow state. Dinner had been strangely pleasant, with nobody really wanting to disturb the peaceful aura that had settled in the room. Polite conversations lasted for two or three sentences, and everybody consented to just smiling and nodding afterwards. After she had been excused, Kagami went up to her room, wiping at her eyes. _"Today was rather boring.. I didn't see anyone except Tsukasa and the rest of my family. I didn't even talk to Konata, except for about a minute.."_

As that thought rolled through her mind, another one popped into her head. A new vigor in her actions, she picked up her cell phone and dialed Konata's number.

"..."

"Hello, Konata Izumi speaking.."

"Hey Konata! You sound so tired, something happen?"

"Oh, Kagami.. No, I just went shopping today. I think I'm just tired from grinding with Kuroi-sensei all of last night."

"There you go again, depriving yourself of sleep for numbers on a screen. I'm gonna come over."

"Sure, sure, I'm too tired to argue anyways.."

"Not like you would argue at all."

"..."

Kagami hung up the phone, making sure she had the last word. Always better to end a conversation with Konata early, before she started something. Chuckling to herself, she started to eye her closet. _"Meh, I should get dressed.."_

/-/

The sky had darkened, and Kagami felt a shiver run down her spine at the chill of the wind and the atmosphere. She flinched as a door opened, sending rays of light into the blackness.

Sojiro greeted his visitor smiling. "Oh, hello Kagami. Konata is up in her room, she might be sleeping. She's been tired ever since she came home, so keep that in mind."

"Thanks. I hope I'm not bothering you." Kagami responded politely, stepping inside. She headed for the stairs.

Kagami pushed Konata's door open gently, slipping into the room and her eyes settled at the figure on the bed. _"She's sleeping.. Imagine all the things I could do to her."_ Trying to come up with something, Kagami dismissed all the _dirty_ ideas her subconscious came up with.. Pretty much all her ideas. _"Whatever.. I'm such a damn perv now.. I'll find something else to do.."_

][ ][

Konata woke up. Opening her eyes warily, she squinted at the source of her awakening, which happened to be right on top of her.  
"Kagami?"

"Oh, hi Konata." Kagami said casually, who was lying across the bluenette's body, trapping her on the bed. Konata stared at her for a moment in confusion before her eyes widened.

"O-Oh! You, uh, um.. I-I'll go clean myself up now..!" Konata made a big deal of trying to shimmy her way out from under her friend's body.

"W-what?! No, I didn't do anything, I swear!" Kagami turned a dark red, protesting her innocence. _"I thought about it, but I didn't!"_  
Konata looked at her, and Kagami felt a dread settle in her chest. Konata stared for a couple more seconds before her face screwed up in laughter, falling backwards onto the bed and hiding her face in her pillow. Kagami put her face in her hands.

"Wow! That was great, hahaha! Man, you fell for it like Snorlax falls for Grass Knot!"

"Ugh. You turned that around pretty damn fast.. did you just call me heavy?" Kagami's eyes hardened, and she leaned forwards to glare at the perpetrator. Konata raised her eyebrows and curled into a ball.

"Maybe. If I say yes, will you punish me?" Konata asked quietly, with a straight face.

"Huh?" Kagami gaped at the unexpected question, and her mind suddenly had very vivid imagery. Her eyes sparked with desire and her lips curved into a smirk, she positioned herself above Konata on her hands and knees.  
".. You're going to be punished regardless!" Kagami uttered slowly, settling herself into a comfortable position on top of her friend. Konata turned her head away in a vain attempt to hide her reddening face.

"K.. Kagami-sama.." The whispered words invoked a strange feeling in Kagami, and she moved her face closer, kissing her girlfriend passionately. Konata's legs rubbed together, and she shivered as she reached up and pulled Kagami closer.

/-/

 **-The Next Morning-**

 _December 20, Sunday_

Kagami yawned, and willed her eyes to open. She couldn't move her arms. Actually, she couldn't really move at all.

All that was visible of the girl sleeping on top of her was a head of blue hair resting on top of her shoulder. Konata mumbled in her sleep, her hands grabbing at Kagami's hair and pulling gently. The tsundere couldn't help but smile. _"She's clingy, even in her sleep."_

Acting on impulse, she rolled to the side, freeing her arm so she could hug Konata tightly. She eyed Konata's lips hungrily, and she ran a tongue over her own. She moved back in to kiss Konata, broke away and went back in for longer this time, then she attempted to push her tongue past the girl's lips, meeting barely any resistance. As Kagami had her way with Konata, the small girl slowly regained consciousness, moaning instinctively into the kiss. Surprised, her eyes widened as she pulled away, a pink color painting her cheeks.

" _Nn_.. K-Kagami?!" She stammered, her eyes darting back and forth. "Uh.. um.. .. you're really _active_ in the morning.." If Kagami was embarrassed at being caught, she didn't show it. Instead she smirked, running her fingers through the wave of blue hair.

"Is that really my fault?" She asked softly, watching as Konata's blush grew. _"I love seeing her like this!"_

Konata smiled and tried to get out of bed, but she was held back. Kagami was yearning for her presence, and the otaku had no choice but to stay in bed. Puffing her cheeks out, Konata let her girlfriend play with her.

"Ka-ga-min, we have to get out of bed.. Let me make breakfast.." Pleaded Konata, trying to separate Kagami's hands from her hair.

"No. I want you here." Kagami stated defiantly, almost like a child.

"Kagami!" Konata pouted, but she gave in and waited. Her emerald eyes wavered and her red blush dissolved into a more modest pink.

A couple minutes passed, before Kagami spoke up.  
"I'm sorry for being selfish. I just wanted to be with you for a little bit longer.."

"That's fine! I don't have a problem with cuddling or anything." Konata said smiling. "But I really do need to go make breakfast now."

][ ][

"So what are you planning today?" Kagami asked the girl across the table, who was eating a rather regular breakfast of rice, miso soup, and eggs.

"Hm.. I still need to go Christmas shopping. Gotta pick up some stuff, maybe groceries too." Konata told herself, coming up with a day's plan in about three seconds.

"Really? I did all my shopping yesterday." Kagami said absently, not realizing her mistake until she was called on it.

"So **that's** what you were doing! I see, I see." Konata pinpointed her gaze on Kagami, who reprimanded her slip of tongue.

"Fine, I was shopping yesterday. I didn't want to go with anyone because that would spoil the surprise."

"It's the thought that counts, right? As long as you paid with your own effort to get the gift, the other person should appreciate it. If it's something you gave them, they should appreciate it no matter its surprise factor or its presentation." Konata explained. She pushed her chair back, standing up and cleaning up. Almost effortlessly, she balanced bowls and plates into her arms, walking towards the kitchen to put them away.

"I really didn't think I'd hear something like that from you." Kagami scoffed, surprised by the heartfelt words.

"Huh.. and thoughts like yours are the ones that shouldn't count.." Konata muttered under her breath just loud enough to be heard.

"What was that?!" Miffed, the tsundere's eyes hardened and she glared at the bluenette.

"Let's go Kagamin! We have to go shopping and stuff! Buy me things, okay? I'm broke!" She cheered, pulling Kagami out of her seat and towards the door.

"H-hey! Don't drag me like that! And I'm not going to buy things for you just like that!"

"Aw, Kagamin, I love it when you say you'll buy me things~!"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **How long has it been since I uploaded? The answer is too long! I'm sorry for the lack of updates, school is being boring and I'm lazy and I get sidetracked by music and videos :D But I'm going to try better!**

 **This story will follow the same track as Lucky Star from here on out, mostly just daily life and fluff. If you want suggestions for events, PM me about it.**

 **I'm working simultaneously on Between Two Friends and Lost, Found, Returned, so I'll try to alternate chapters, but expect longer times between new chapters to either story.**

 **Recently my parents brought some macarons, so Ib has been swimming around in my mind. Macarons are delicious!**

 **I'm starting to play The Gray Garden by Deep Sea Prisoner (Mogeko)! I watched less than an hour of gameplay and decided I wanted to experience the rest of the game myself. Please do check out the game, it's RPGMaker with actual RPG! It's adorable and amazing and DSP does a lot of good games!**

Sym: That's definitely one hell of an author's note! Welcome back to the chapter's end everybody, today we have Miyuki and Tsukasa on the show with us!

Miyuki: Thank you for having us here, Sym!

Tsukasa: Yeah. Hello again!

Sym: So, Christmas is coming up and that means gift shopping. Mind if I take a peek? I can access your memories, as long as you permit me to visit those specific areas.

Tsukasa: Wha? You can read our minds?

Miyuki: Psychic powers.. Could you tell me more about it at a later date?

Sym: It's sort of an innate ability, I can chat with you about it another time. So, how about that permission? Just give the word and I'll look.

Tsukasa: Will it feel weird?

Sym: You'll be able to sense my presence, but that's it.

Miyuki: I'm fine with it.. I'm rather interested in this ability though.

Tsukasa: Um.. go ahead..

Sym: Alright. *concentration*

 _Tsukasa's presents are mainly various stuffed animals. For her twin, a fox; her mother and father, two polar bears; for her other sisters, a puppy and a kitten. Konata gets a bunny; Miyuki, a sheep.  
Miyuki's presents have more variety; a sweater for Tsukasa, a pillow for her mother, and a set of light novels for Kagami. For Konata, an apron with some anime logo on the front. There's a couple books for Minami._

Sym: Hm. Tsukasa, why the fox?

Tsukasa: Fox? .. Oh, that one.. Well, Kona-chan says she's a fox, and sis.. you know..

Sym: Ah, makes sense. Brilliant. Thank you both for being here today!

Miyuki: Not a problem, but please do remember to tell me about your abilities sometime.

Sym: Sure sure, see you all in the next chapter's end!


	11. Chapter 11: Initiation

_December 24_

A tiny girl with pink hair descended the stairs sleepily, almost stumbling at the bottom. Muttering something indecipherable, she walked past the girl with blue hair, who was washing her hands at the sink. _"Huah.. So tired.. what was I doing last night anyways?"_

Yawning, she dropped into a chair and immediately breathed out in relaxation. _"This chair is soft.. and warm.."_

As she leaned back in her seat, she felt as if her entire body was encompassed in warmth. _".. It's like a hug.. so nice.."_

Yutaka did not realize if she fell asleep, nor could she tell how long she was sitting there. It probably would have gone on longer.. If someone didn't wake her up.

"Yu-chan.." A warm, loving voice whispered into her ear, and she felt a cold, wet touch on her neck. A moment passed before her face was engulfed in red darker than her hair, and she couldn't stop a squeak of surprise from leaving her lips.

"Ah.. ah! W-w-wha?! W-wait, sis, what are you d-doing?!" She tried to escape, but she was held fast by Konata's arms.

"Giving you your Christmas present.. Yu-chan~.." Konata whispered, squeezing around Yutaka's waist gently yet firmly.

Yutaka squirmed and stuttered for a bit, before she gave up her struggles. _"W..what? Sis is.. what.. did we.. ah.."_

The bluenette kept her in the darkness for a little longer, before she allowed the girl to tilt her head back. Leaning over her and looking directly down into the lime eyes, she smiled devilishly, with all the intent of a cat eyeing its prey.

"Yutaka, it's a joke."

"..."

"..."

".. Eh?"

][ ][

".. and my hands weren't dry yet." Konata finished her explanation with a shrug and a satisfied nod.

".. O-oh.." Yutaka, mumbled, looking down at her lap.

"But man, that was great!" Konata blurted, bending over in laughter. "The way you jumped and made those cute sounds and tried to get away! You're still blushing too! Hahaha!"

Yutaka wanted to hide herself away. She tried to laugh, but only succeeded in looking even more embarrassed. _"She really had me fooled.."_

"Hah.. ah.. Alright. Christmas Eve, Yu-chan! I'm gonna go hang out with my Kagamin, so have fun with Minami!" Konata winked, before she turned and headed for the door, grabbing her things and waving a goodbye.

Smiling, Yutaka waved and said her goodbyes, before she realized what Konata had just referenced. Blushing crimson, she puffed her cheeks and walked up to her stairs to get her cell phone. _"M.. Minami-chan? N-no, it's not like that.. is it? Ah.. I wonder what Minami-chan thinks of us.. I think I'll call her.. wonder if she's busy.."_

Sojiro walked past his niece, who was going up the stairs the same time he was going down. Raising an eyebrow at the girl's intense blush, he continued down to the table where he found breakfast and a note. With a smile, he sat down and read the note from his daughter.

"Going out with Kagamin, don't get too lonely by yourself! Enjoy your Christmas Eve! -Konata

Also, Yu-chan is great to prank!"

Still smiling, he could feel the imaginary tears rolling down his cheeks.

 _"My own daughter still loves to make fun of me on this day.. Nothing will ever change that, heh?"_

/-/

Konata knocked on the door to her lover's house, not waiting for a response. Opening the door, she called out her arrival and put her bag down in the hallway.

"Hello!" Konata greeted, bounding around the family's table and saying each person's name, punctuated by a quick hug. "Morning Miki-san.. Tadao-san.. Matsuri-sama.. Inori-chan.. Tsukasa-chan.." She was met with smiles and friendly greetings, except from the one person she hadn't yet acknowledged.

Kagami turned around and pretended to glare. "What? You aren't even going to say my name?"

"I wanted you to notice me first.. My Kagamin!" Konata giggled, throwing her arms around her girlfriend and kissing her on the cheek. Kagami blushed a little bit, but she responded in kind.  
"That's my tsundere! _Chu!_ " Konata smiled before she stood up. "Happy Christmas Eve everyone! What've you all got in plan?"

"We're going out together." Tadao smiled, putting an arm around his wife's shoulders. She smiled back at him.

"Tadao and I always make a point to spend our Christmas Eve together!" Miki kissed him on the cheek, their hands entwined.

Konata grinned at the two parents, making a small bow in their direction. "You two really are great parents and great partners!" She turned her head in the direction of the two oldest daughters in the family.

"I'm going with Inori." Matsuri said.

"I'm going with Matsuri." Inori followed up immediately, almost cutting her sister off. "Since neither of us are in a relationship, she was begging me to go with her so she wasn't lonely."

"Hey! You don't have to say that!" Matsuri growled, narrowing her eyes in anger. "Wait, I didn't beg you for anything! You asked me!" Inori turned on her sister, staring with condescending eyes.

"Really now?"

As the two argued, Tsukasa looked at her friend with an apologetic smile.

"Ah.. I'm going to be spending my day with Miyuki-san and whoever she wants to bring. I'm not in a romance either, so.. yeah.." She admitted nervously.  
 _"Why am I nervous? Should I be nervous? Kona-chan has that effect.. I wonder if I'm weird?"_

Spaced out, Tsukasa fretted and muttered to herself, her expression changing every so often as if she were holding a conversation with herself. Leaving the airhead to her own thoughts, Konata draped herself around Kagami.

"And what are you doing today, Kagami?" She asked, lazily tracing a finger around her girlfriend's shoulders. "You've worked me into your schedule, right?"

"Nope. I'm spending the day without you." Kagami stated in a monotone. She hurriedly retracted her statement, seeing the frozen expression and quivering lip. "N-no, I'm joking! I don't have plans besides being with you today.."

Brightening instantaneously, Konata cheered and put her hands in the air. "Yay! Come on, finish up! I have presents!"

][ ][

"I bought you this stuff!" Konata reached into the black bag she had brought, and pulled out a shiny black gift box wrapped with a red ribbon, holding it out to her lover with a wide smile. Kagami accepted with a raised eyebrow.

"Should I be suspicious?" She couldn't help but ask.  
 _"Not like your choice of colors help my judgement."_

"Kagamin~, it's Christmas Eve! Don't be so suspicious!" Konata pouted. "Just accept the free stuff!"

"I know, I know.. I'm just messing with you." A white lie. Kagami smiled disarmingly, an expression she rarely used. Of course, Konata made note of this.

"Please don't smile like that. I'm getting scared."

" **Hey.** "

She untied the ribbon and lifted the lid of the box. What she found was a colorful display of more boxes. Taking a closer look, she saw that the boxes were actually snacks.

"Sweets?" Kagami wondered aloud. "Let's see.. _Rare Cheesecake_ and _Royal Milk Tea_ _pocky_.. _Green Tea_ and _Dark Chocolate Kit Kat_.." As she read the flavors to herself, Konata watched with uncharacteristic pink tinted cheeks. She put her hands behind her back and opened her mouth, searching for something to say.

"Um.. I didn't really know what to get you, so I, uh, decided to get those. I think they're sort of hard to find.. like, the flavor is hard to find, not the pocky or the Kit Kats, those are easy to get, but I figured you would want something that's sort of special, and.. H-huh?" Kagami put her arms around the otaku, pulling her in for a gentle hug. A quiet gasp escaped from the girl's lips before she went silent, blushing a light red.

"I still don't understand how you switch modes so quickly. You go from being frustrating to ridiculously cute." Kagami smiling teasingly, her fingers running through Konata's smooth blue hair.

"You're supposed to be the one who changes personalities.." Konata muttered. Her willpower and strength evaporated, leaving behind a simple feeling of contentness at being so close to the one she loved.  
 _"What's up with me? I feel so powerless.."_

Minutes passed, and the two didn't move from their standing embrace. It was as if even the flow of time had left them alone for this one precious moment.

"Hey.. It's a really thoughtful gift, Konata. You're very sweet when you want to be, you know that?" Smiling softly, she stroked the cerulean hair again.

"Mm.." Breathing in the familiar scent, Konata buried her face in Kagami's shirt, feeling the purple hair rest against her shoulder. "It's your fault."

"I'm fine with that."

Gazing into a pair of sharp purple eyes, Konata felt herself being drawn in..

"Nice! Keep going, just like that.. Perfect, excellent! Great job you two!"

Self-control coming back to her, Konata jumped and looked at the door, the source of the voice. The surprise on her face was evident as she looked away, trying vainly to hide her blush from Matsuri, who was standing in the doorframe with a malicious look on her face.

Matsuri opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Hazel eyes widened as her sister turned the bluenette's head to face her and leaned in for a passionate kiss. She stood there for a couple moments, but she hastily backed out and closed the door when she saw a hand slip under Konata's shirt.

As soon as their unwanted guest had left, Konata broke away from the kiss with a smirk, removing the intruding hand from her clothes.

"Alright, let's not get hasty.. After all, you need energy for the rest of today!"

"I was just doing that to make her go away. I don't actually care about your body at all." Kagami grinned, but the other girl didn't miss a beat.

"If that's the case, we don't have to spend the night together. We can part after our date is over-" She was cut off suddenly, and she felt herself being yanked towards the door.

"Okay, let's go outside now! You have a lot planned, right? Let's get going!"

"H-hey.."

/-/

It was cold outside, and Konata felt a chill as she stepped into the morning air. Exhaling in relief, she relaxed her body and allowed the cold to embrace her. Now accustomed to the temperature, she turned to her date with a smile.

"Anything you wanna do today, Kagami? We can do whatever you want!" Konata's eyes were gleaming with pride and excitement. Kagami felt a little warm spark in her heart as she looked at the short girl.

 _"This is my first Christmas Eve with Konata!"_

"I don't really have anything in mind right now, but there are things I want to do later tonight." Kagami said. "Is it okay if we go to Tokyo? I know it's far, but I really would like to go there.."

"Oh, sure. I was planning to bring you there anyways." Konata agreed with a grin and a nod. "Wait, by things you want to do tonight.. do you mean..?"

" **No** , that isn't what I mean!"

][ ][

A lull in the conversation formed a silence between them as they disembarked the train. After a couple minutes of walking the city streets, Konata broke the silence. Shaking her head as if to clear away the ever-present cold air, she sighed regretfully. "Yeah.. Didn't think it would be this cold.."

Looking over the otaku's outfit, Kagami clicked her tongue in annoyance. The girl was wearing a white shirt framed with a gray vest, and a pair of black cargo pants. The short-sleeved shirt and thin layers were the very definition of what not to wear in the winter. Her hair was done up in a ponytail, giving her a much more adult look. Of course, there's still a limit to how mature you can look, being 142 centimeters.

On the contrary, Kagami was wearing a gray winter trench coat over her black undershirt. She also wore a pair of black pants, and her hair was done up in twin tails with black ribbons.

"You forgot it was winter? It might be fine right now, but it's going to get even colder, idiot. I can't believe you wore such thin clothes." Kagami sighed, and her companion rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

"Haha.. sorry. Planned out everything except for what I would wear, so.. I'll just have to get used to it, I'll be fine after like, an hour!" Konata claimed confidently. Kagami shook her head, taking one of the girl's hands in her own.

"Your hand is so cold! And you're shivering! What were you thinking?" Kagami scolded, giving her friend a stern look.  
 _"Idiot. And I didn't bring any extra clothes either."_

"Don't worry about it! I'm pretty strong, you know?" Konata put her hands on her hips, but a sudden well-timed gust of wind caused her to shiver and wrap her arms around herself. With a sigh, Kagami hugged the girl's shoulder, drawing her in.

"Whatever. I can't do much, but this should help a bit."

".. Thanks, Kagami!" Konata glowed, happily hugging her source of warmth tightly. The tsundere muttered to herself, but the annoyed words mismatched her expression.

/-/

Together they wandered the city, checking out the shopping district and festive decorations. It wasn't the most unique of things, but Christmas Eve added a romantic flair to almost everything, as long as you were with someone you loved.

The streets of Tokyo were bustling with people; Not quite a crowd, but a lot of people nonetheless. Kagami was glad that it wasn't so packed as to ensure bumping into someone every second.

"Have you noticed how Christmas Eve makes everyone happier?" Konata suddenly asked, looking up at Kagami with a pleased expression. "It's like nobody wants to ruin the atmosphere."

"You're right.." She stared at Konata, who stared back. "Even you're different."

"Eh?"

"You aren't as energetic, and you're too friendly. Reminds me of the time when you drank that sake and had to go home early.."

"Hm. You could say I'm drunk on love, Kagamin!" Konata stated with a cat-like smile. In return, she got a sigh and a shake of the head. "Wanna go grab a table over there, in the plaza thing? I need to get something, so I'll join you in like, 10 minutes."

Without waiting for an answer, Konata slipped away and out of sight. Somewhat startled and annoyed at her date's sudden disappearance, Kagami groaned.

 _"There she goes again, running off without warning me. Guess I'll go find a table."_

/-/

Konata checked her mental map again, making sure she was in the right area. Turning a corner, her eyes settled on her destination. "Ah, there it is."

Dodging past a couple people, she stopped in front of the streetside restaurant and called out. "Hey! Patty!"

"Oh, give me a moment. Kuroi-sensei, can you take over here?" A familiar voice called out, and within seconds the owner of the voice was standing in front of Konata. "Hey, Konata! You want your order now?" Patty gave her upperclassman a quick hug, already starting towards the kitchen.

"Yeah, thanks." Konata watched the blonde walk behind the counter and through a swinging door.

Patty took on a lot of part-time jobs, including working at the cosplay cafe, and she was working at the restaurant for Christmas time. Ever so thoughtful, the foreigner had offered to reserve an order for her fellow student, and Konata thanked her for that.

"Oi, what's up Izumi?" Another familiar voice called out to her, and she looked towards the source. "Didn't think I'd see you here!"

"Oh, hey sensei. I can say the same." Konata greeted the other blonde who was working the counter. She grinned, seeing an opportunity to tease. "Working on Christmas Eve? Quite lonely, don't you think?"

"Hey, don't get sassy with me just because you have Kagami Hiiragi as your girlfriend." Kuroi steamed, staring down her student with baleful eyes.  
 _"Damn you Izumi.. Don't you know how much those kinds of remarks sting, coming from you of all people?"_

"Haha, sorry sorry!" Konata laughed. "If it helps, my dad got the same thing too."

"Your own father, you little devil.. Poor guy." Kuroi stated grimly, before she burst into laughter. "Well, you better have fun! Not all of us are as lucky as you are, so make the most of it."

"Don't worry, Kagami and I are madly in love! Nothing could separate us."

Kuroi went back to her job, chatting absently with the customers about how annoying the girl in blue was. Konata leaned against a wall to wait.

/-/

"Kagamin~! I'm back, did you miss me?" Kagami jumped in surprise when someone hugged her from behind.

"Oh, Konata. Don't do that."

"Aw, why not? Do you not like my hugs?"

"It's not that, if you surprise me I might knock you out."

"I'm glad that my Kagamin only wants my hugs."

"Of course, you idiot."

Konata hummed victoriously, setting a bag down on the table. "I know you're hungry, so I went and grabbed lunch. It's hard to get this around Christmas time, so praise me!"

"Whoa, fried chicken? But you were only gone for like, 10 minutes!" Her interest was piqued when she saw the fruit of Konata's efforts.  
 _"Some people order this stuff months in advance.."_

"Ah, Patty helped me. She's working at a place around here, and she set aside a priority order for me or something." She explained smugly. "I hope you don't mind having fast food for lunch, but I have something fancier planned for tonight."

"This is fine, I don't mind having fast food once in a while."

"Patty tells me that they have this stuff all the time over in America!"

"Really? It's so unhealthy.."

/-/

After they had finished eating and had found somewhere to wash up, Konata and Kagami spent the rest of the daylight walking around and talked about whatever topic came to mind. Before long, the sky was getting darker, the sun painting an orange glow on the horizon.

"Oh, the sun is setting." Konata pointed out. "Soon they'll start to turn on all those lights."

"Yeah, there really are a lot of them! It's like the entire city is covered with lights." Kagami replied.

"It is, it is! You can't go anywhere without seeing a light show these days! It's strange how it doesn't get old, right?"

"You'd think that Japan would be tired of lights, since we already have illumination every night. Yet there's still light shows during the holidays, and everybody still enjoys it."

"I guess we're compensating for not being able to see the stars?" Konata wondered, looking up towards the skies.

"It's the reason why we can't see them, Konata. Too many lights down here makes it hard to see anything up there except for the moon." Explained the taller girl, who looked on with an amused smile.

"Ohh! I see." Innocent understanding dawned on the bluenette's face.

The idle conversation continued for a while, as it always did. There was something to be said about their bond. Even though it was the simplest thing in the world, talking with the otaku was secretly Kagami's favorite thing to do. Konata had a way of making everything refreshing, even topics that seemed to have been exhausted already.

"Hey, are you hungry?" Speak of the devil, there she was. "I reserved a spot in some restaurant, so we can eat anytime between six and seven pm."

"Oh, sure. I mean, we aren't doing anything besides walking around, so we may as well go now."

"Ah, I knew it! You are always hungry!" Konata teased, nudging her girlfriend's side. "I hope you at least exercise, since you obviously have no willpower for dieting."

"Shush. I don't want to hear that from someone who eats nothing but chocolate cornets and apple juice."

Certain topics that should have been exhausted a long time ago. Unfortunately, Konata had a habit of being able to bring anything up and make it relevant.

/-/

Dinner was in an upscale restaurant, one that turned people away with thoughts like _"So expensive.."_ to _"Too fancy.."_ and other such excuses. However, Konata had none of these qualms, and she grabbed her partner's hand, leading her into the fully occupied and addressing the man at the podium with a polite voice.

"Good evening. I have a table reserved under Konata Izumi." She didn't beat around the bush, nor did the other guy.

"Ah, welcome Izumi-san." He stepped out from behind his podium, and with a polite bow he led them through the restaurant's hallways, into a lavish dining room that looked very busy.

He had a distinct accent that Kagami barely recognized, yet his Japanese was fluent and clear. As she thought that, Konata took her hand in her own, pulling her gently along.

"This restaurant is apparently very French." Konata clarified, seeing the thoughtful expression. "They had some good reviews and stuff, so I figured we could try it out! Should be a nice change from normal stuff."

"Hm. Miyuki talks about it sometimes. She says that the French take a lot of pride in their food." Kagami remembered all the conversations she had with the pink-haired girl.  
 _"Miyuki really seems to know a lot about this kind of stuff. She makes me feel so low-class.."_

"I believe her. From how high they set their prices and decor, they must be pretty damn confident in how good their cooking is." Konata grinned. "Bet I could do better, though."

"Maybe. We should get Miyuki to judge that. As a bourgeois, she's perfect for that job!"

"She probably eats like this every day, if not better than this.." Konata heaved a deep sigh. "The differences between her class and mine may be bigger than the difference between our size.." The disheartened look on the vertically challenged girl's face was asking to be teased, but Kagami decided to be nice.

"Don't worry, I like you the way you are. Being short is cute, you know?" She was surprised when the response she got wasn't a thankful smile or a pout, but instead a confused look.

"I was talking about our bust sizes, not our height." She stated bluntly without any trace of embarrassment. Kagami put her hand to her forehead and blew out of the side of her mouth in exasperation.

"If I didn't like you so much, I would hate you. I hope you know that."

][ ][

The table they were led to was jet black with a dull golden border, and their seat was a maroon-colored sofa against the wall. Business was running high, and friendly conversation was accompanied by occasional laughter and cheers. Metallic lanterns hanging from the ceiling shone with a warm orange light, giving the room a cozy yet refined aura. While she was not able to take it all in at once, Kagami definitely did feel a sense of endearment already.

"This place is amazing! The atmosphere is so.. friendly! It's like the bars in video games.." She gazed about, her eyes taking in all the details of the restaurant.

"They say that the theme of this restaurant is steampunk and tavern." Konata explained, taking a seat down at the sofa. Her date took a seat next to her, picking up one of the menus on the table. Konata giggled, putting her arm around Kagami's waist and resting her head on the girl's shoulder. "Ah, going directly for the food? You don't want to play with me, Kagamin?"

"Food is more important." Kagami laughed and returned the embrace, letting her girlfriend know she was joking. Konata turned her eyes towards the menu, and her eyes lit up when she saw the vivid aesthetic displays.

"Whoa! What's this?" Konata pointed at an elegantly garnished plate.

"I don't know." Kagami's voice was dismissive and monotone, but she did have to admit that the dish pointed out did seem impressive.

"Boring. We should try it!"

"Konata, don't be so hasty. Check the description first." Her words went in one ear and out the other. The bluenette reached for something on the table, holding it up for Kagami to see.

"Look, they use forks here! You know how to use a fork, right?"

"Of course I do! I've eaten out enough to know how to use a fork and knife, I'm not a stay at home like you are!"

The other menu sat on the table, untouched.

/-/

".. and that's the reason I actually enrolled in Ryōō." Konata finished her story, immediately being fixed with an annoyed glare. She nervously laughed, taking another bite of her meal to break eye contact for a couple relieved moments.

"I can't believe you. Your lack of motivation is appalling." Kagami muttered. "You seriously blackmailed your dad like that?" The venomous tone left no doubt of her disapproval, and suddenly the otaku felt like she needed to defend herself.

"We _eeee_ ll, I know he wanted it too.. He just was reluctant, so I told him that I wouldn't go to school until he bought the console." Her defense back-fired. All it did was intensify the glare that was directed at her.

"Don't make excuses. You're just lazy and unmotivated." Kagami shook her head, picking up her fork and poking a piece of meat. "What were your other reasons?"

"Hm." Konata swallowed the food she was chewing, pursing her lips in thought. "Dunno. I went to school because my dad wanted me to, but I personally didn't see a point in it."

"Seriously? You don't care about your future? Didn't any of your friends transfer into Ryōō?"

"Nah. I only had one friend, and I haven't seen her since the middle school graduation ceremony." Konata said easily. Even though she didn't seem offended, Kagami mentally slapped herself in the forehead.

 _"Why did I say that? She already told me about how she didn't have many close friends until us, and here I am using it against her!"_

"Sorry.. I didn't mean it like that." She said, not looking at Konata but not looking away either. "It sort of just came out, and I probably sound really insensitive.."

Konata didn't say anything for a second, and her neutral expression momentarily changed into a frown, but almost instantly it turned into a wide smile.

"Oh, that's what you're all sad about? **Tsundere**.. heheh.." Konata teased, holding the _tsundere's_ hand between both of her own. "It's nice that you care about my feelings so much!"

Casting her eyes across the room, Kagami watched a couple who were smiling and chatting happily. She didn't make eye contact with her own date, but Konata waited patiently. Eventually, the bluenette continued, gripping Kagami's hand firmly.

"Kagami, I'm not good at these kinds of situations. I'll cry." She said in a monotone, quickly equipping her best sad expression. Panic flashed in Kagami's eyes, and she turned towards Konata, words of panic already on her lips.

"Wait, please don't cry! Konata, I'm sorry!" She barely had enough time to get the words out before Konata moved forward, giving her a gentle kiss. Surprised, it took Kagami a second to realize what was going on, but she gladly returned the kiss, and while it lasted for mere seconds she would remember the feeling for much longer.

"Let's enjoy ourselves, okay?"

On her face, a smile. In her eyes, happiness. In her body language, a relaxation that only showed at times like this. Kagami noticed everything about her friend and lover, albeit she did so in the subconscious part of her mind. Although she didn't realize it herself, she could read the otaku's mood like a picture. Give it a couple minutes of concentration, and she could practically see into the girl's heart.

She smiled, nodded, needing no words to communicate her understanding.

That was where conversation between the two ended, only to be started up once again after just a minute.

/-/

"Let's go on the ferris wheel!"

From the insistence in her request and the way Konata pulled on her sleeves, the girl with twintails couldn't help but smile. _"She reminds me of a little kid.."_

"Sure, sure." She agreed, already starting to walk towards the line for the ride. Her childish friend pulled her along, managing to keep the same distance ahead of her partner.

"Slow!" She teased with a grin on her face. "The line will just get longer, Kagamin! Walk faster, please."

Rolling her eyes, Kagami stepped into line next to the energetic girl. "You're too loud. There are other people here, you know?"

The wait was much shorter than she had anticipated, even though the line was surely at least 30 meters long. Before long, she was being ushered into a gondola and the door closed, leaving her sitting next to Konata in a basket-shaped pod. There was no needs for words as the wheel turned, and the gondola was gradually lifted off the ground.

"Hey, Kagami.." Konata started, waiting for Kagami to look at her. When the girl did, she continued in a serious voice. "I'm really thankful to you. You were one of the few people to accept me as a friend, and you always stick with me no matter how annoying I am."  
"Uh.. I just want you to know that I cherish the time we've known each other, and hope that we can be with each other for a long time."

By this point, Kagami had definitely noticed that her girlfriend seemed to be acting strange. It seemed that the higher they rose into the air, the more tension crept into Konata's voice, the more color crept onto her cheeks.

Then she noticed what was in Konata's hands, and her heart stopped.

 _"... ... ... ... ..?!"_  
 _"W-What? Is that.."_

Konata cleared her throat, turning her body to face Kagami.

"T.. This is for you!" She looked down at the object in her lap and gulped. The lid popped open.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I can't remember writing a cliffhanger steeper than this since I've never written one at all.**

 **Don't worry, we ain't done yet! It's been 6 days since I updated, and I apologize deeply for the extreme slowdown in content. I have trouble focusing as of late, and not as much time to work. I thought this chapter was getting extremely long, but turns out it was only 5k! _" Please tell me what you think of my ever changing writing style, about the story, and ask me questions about stuff! I'll do my best not to disappoint!**

Sym: It's been so long, but welcome back to the chapter's end! Today I'm here with Kagami, our local foods expert!

Kagami: Since when did I have that title?

Sym: Moving on, you were given a gift of pocky and Kit Kats by Konata. Mind explaining to us the choice of flavors?

Kagami: Oh, that.. Well, rare cheesecake and royal milk tea pocky are harder to find than the normal chocolate and strawberry flavors. It's more expensive, more exclusive, and more exotic. That's the way they get people to buy it.

Sym: How about the Kit Kats? Anything special about those?

Kagami: Kit Kats became a big thing some time ago, and now they have a ton of flavors. They're given as a good luck gift, but they're also a good gift in general. Green tea and dark chocolate are my favorite flavors.. I'm glad Konata remembered that..

Sym: Thanks for explaining that! Before we leave, I wanted to give this to you. *hands Kagami a fruit*

Kagami: .. A lemon? And what is this for?

Sym: One of our guest reviewers requested that we put this into the story, but it got shafted. Originally, Konata was to give it to you as part of her gift, and then the waiter was supposed to give it to you for some reason, but they both missed it. So it's ended up with me.

Kagami: Why are you giving it to me? Why do I need this?

Sym: Actually now that I think about it, the lemon should go to the other story, SFL. I believe there was a discussion about it, and apparently it can't go in this story because of the T-rating.

Kagami: Mind explaining what you mean by that? *suspicious look at Sym and the lemon*

Sym: No reason at all! Do you want that?

Kagami: No.

Sym: Alright, I'll send it over to the SFL people right now. *takes the fruit, and it disappears*

Kagami: ...

Sym: That'll be all for today! Thank you Kagami for being here today, and we'll see you in the next chapter!


	12. Chapter 12: Aftermath

Kagami watched in a stunned silence as Konata fumbled with the box, eventually popping the lid open and holding it up.

 _"What do I say? I want to say yes, but is it really okay? I mean, we're still in high school.."_

"Uh..?" A quiet voice sliced through the air. Kagami was snapped out of her thoughts, and she looked at the other girl in a panic.

"Y-Yeah! I accept! Thank you so much!" She stumbled over her words as she wrapped the petite girl in a hug.

".. Huh? Um, okay.." Her anxiety over whether or not Kagami would like the gift turned into confusion, but Konata was happy anyways. "This is my way of saying thank you. Here, close your eyes."

Kagami closed her eyes, and she started to lift her left hand. She flinched as the cold metal settled against her bare skin.  
"Okay!"

When she opened her eyes, Kagami looked down and saw not a ring around her finger, but a pendant around her neck. The silver chains seemed to glow in the twilight, and they came together to line a gleaming wing with ruby plumage only slightly smaller than her little finger.

 _"A necklace?"_ Not sure of what to think, her mind blanked as she watched light reflect off the radiant gemstone.

"Uh.. if you don't like it, there's this one too." Konata held up a similar piece of jewelry which was identical to hers, except the wing was made of a verdant emerald. "They came together, and I wasn't sure which one you wanted.. If you want, we can switch."

"Konata.." Kagami looked between the pieces of jewelry, then at the girl sitting next to her. Everything seemed to have been iced over; Time was frozen around the two, and there was only silence.

"..."

"..."

Eternities passed before a sudden urge overcame her willpower, and Kagami couldn't stop her lips from forming into a smile, nor could she stop herself from giggling for no apparent reason.

"K-Kagami?" Taken aback by the severe mood change, Konata just watched her friend break down into a fit of laughter as she weakly took the bluenette's hands in her own, clumsily pulling her in for a shaky hug.

"Hahah, I can't believe you! For a second I thought you were actually proposing to me.. pfft!" Kagami spluttered in a very rare moment of undignified giddiness. Her companion just gaped in astonishment.

"W-what? Proposing?" In an equally rare moment, Konata made it clear by her startled tone and flustered expression that she had been taken off guard.

"Damnit, you freaking otaku.. I love you so much, you know that Konata?" The euphoria that had taken over finally started to subside, and she finally managed to control herself. While she couldn't stop smiling, she did manage to calm her laughter down a little bit.

"U-Um.." In her own confusion Konata found herself speechless. An unusual event, of course. Her partner also knew fully well, not only how uncommon it was, but also how to use it to her own advantage.

 _"Cold.."_ Was the first thought she had as their lips touched. The sudden contact sent an electrifying shiver through Konata's body, and she gave into her urges. Her eyelids slowly closed, she felt herself melting in Kagami's arms, losing all the willpower and strength to move on her own.

Kagami lost track of everything else, forgot all about the night and the ferris wheel. All that was important right now was the girl in her arms, the warmth of her touch, and the positively angelic sounds she made.

The only idea of how long their kiss had lasted was that it had ended too soon, but what came after was just as good. She had no desire to move, and it didn't seem like Konata did either. Kagami reached out and embraced Konata, feeling a warmth grow in her chest as a head of blue hair came to rest on her shoulder.

"Kagami?" A quiet voice reached her ears. When she looked at the speaker she was greeted by a pair of shining emeralds.

"Hm?" She stared into Konata's face, taking in the beautiful mix of colors that made up her hair, face, and her eyes.

"We aren't moving.." Konata pointed out lazily without moving her head. At first the tsundere didn't understand, but after a couple moments it came to her.

Kagami looked outside of the gondola for the first time since she had boarded, and she was greeted with Tokyo in all of its nocturnal glory. It was as if the city itself had drained the light out of the heavens, leaving the sky pitch black and starless. In bright contrast to the blanket of night, the city was ablaze with color, illumined by neon lights as far as the eye could see. It was a spectacular view, and they always say that no matter how many times you see it, the city of lights will always be incredible.

"Beautiful.." Kagami breathed, the vibrant light of the city reflected on her face and in her eyes. Konata leaned forwards, looking between the illuminated city and the face of her girlfriend with a grin.

"Definitely."

/-/

They were jolted back to the present when the gondola shook. After another moment, the ferris wheel started to turn once more, slowly bringing the two of them back down to earth, away from the heavenly view of the urban city.

"Sorry guys, the ride sort of had a power cut or something." The operator called out to the riders as they descended. "I hope it wasn't too imposing on your time or anything."

"Nah dude, it's chill!" Konata responded in kind, her voice the same volume as the operator's. She even used the same tone as the other man, mimicking his slang as if she had spoken it all of her life. "Actually, we had a pretty good time up here! Great view, thanks man!"

Her statement was met with a chorus of agreement from the other gondolas. It was like Konata had managed to clear away the enchantment instilled by the breathtaking view of the nighttime metropolis.

"Oh, really? If it was that great.." Rubbing his hands together, he turned to face the line of people waiting to board the ride. He took a deep breath, and his words rang loud and clear over the heads of all the couples in the surrounding area. "Starting now, the **ferris wheel** will stop at the **top** , giving you a **great view** of the city! Get in line now, we're **open until dawn**!"

Relaxing in her seat with a satisfied hum, Konata grinned at Kagami. "He's really good at announcing stuff. He knows how to get to the important part.. Makes me wish he was my teacher."

Kagami ignored the casual remark, instead answering with a question. "What was up with that? The accent and the slang."

"That? Everybody knows that if you speak in the native tongue, you'll be able to get in friendlier with the locals." Her voice took on a smug tone, as if Konata thought it should be self-explanatory.

"I don't think it applies in this sort of context." Kagami sighed. "Was it really necessary?"

"No, but did you notice how everybody sort of got a little happier? It's like small talk in a visual novel.. It doesn't affect your story directly, but it gets you a couple extra points with the character, which might lead to a hidden scene!" Voice rising with excitement, Konata's eyes lit up at finding an excuse to talk about video games.

Kagami didn't respond to the obsessive otaku, instead inconspicuously tuning into her surroundings. Sure enough, the cold night air was now filled with happy chatter, much like that of the restaurant.  
 _"She was right.. Everyone seems a bit more social now.."_

"You know, even though everyone else loosened up, you're still as cold as ever Kagami.." Trailing off, Konata waited until the tsundere's attention was on her before she broke eye contact, looking down at her lap and letting her bangs cover her face. Sure enough, she got the reaction she wanted.

"Wait, Konata, I'm sorry.. I don't mean to be rude, you know me.. After all, I'm a.. tsundere.. right?" Attempting to appeal to the otaku's interests, she reluctantly uttered the forsaken word. It sort of worked, because Konata's head snapped up, all traces of her hurt attitude gone.

"Gah! Don't say it!" She put her hand over Kagami's mouth, as if she would continue to speak of taboo subjects. "You can't admit to being one, you'll ruin it!"

"Mmph!" Kagami narrowed her eyes in annoyance, reaching up to move the hand from her mouth. "What do you mean, ruin it?! Your fault for-"

Konata cut her off. The petite girl darted forwards, kissed the tsundere on the lips, and pulled away after a couple seconds. "I'm sorry. That makes up for it, right?"

"Hm.. No." Kagami gave it barely half a second of thought before shaking her head, grabbing Konata by the shoulders and pulling her back in for another kiss. She established her dominance quickly, using the advantage of surprise to force Konata into leaning backwards.

Kagami felt a slightly twisted sense of pleasure when Konata started to make feeble struggles and quiet moans, deepening the kiss and leaning forwards even more. She was practically holding Konata in her arms at this point, and had the bluenette pretty much lying across her lap.

Eventually, Konata realized she couldn't escape. All of her attempts to get up ended up in Kagami pushing her back down and kissing her even harder.  
 _"I'm gonna suffocate if she kisses me any harder! Hm.. It's not a bad way to go, but I should really try to not die here."_

Her mind desperately whipped up a solution to her problem, and she tried one last time to push her captor away. When it didn't work, Konata _lost her grip_ on Kagami's shoulders, and she let herself go limp, doing her best to stop moving completely.

"Konata?" Finally, Kagami pulled away, confused by the sudden lack of movement. "Konata!"

Coming to a realization of what she was doing, she fearfully grabbed the otaku's shoulders, pulling her upright into a sitting position, shaking her gently. "Come on, wake up! Wake up Konata!"

"Oh, so you're done?" A familiar voice reached out to her, and Kagami turned to look at the grinning operator. They had come to a stop at ground level, and from what she could tell it had been like this for a while. "Sorry, I didn't want to disturb you two. But it looks like you've got some fans."

A group of couples were watching her with understanding smiles and snickers, and Kagami felt her face flush red with embarrassment. "Wh.. sorry.. We'll get going now."

The operator opened the door to the gondola, helping Kagami out of the pod. He looked at the unmoving girl propped up against the seat. She hesitantly opened her eyes, then she grinned and winked at the operator when she saw him. Closing her eyes, she fell over onto her side with a muffled _thud_.

"Mm. Did you kiss her to death?" He half-joked, having seen the intense.. action.. between the two. He made a mental note to hold back on the jokes about death when the girl with twintails started to stammer something incomprehensible, shaking her head in a panic. He reached into the cart, picking up the _unconscious_ girl and pulling her out of the gondola.

"N-no! I mean, I hope not!" At the operator's request, she stepped forwards and turned around, securing her grip behind Konata's knees when the operator transferred the bluenette onto her back.  
 _"Keep calm and don't panic! You don't die instantly from suffocation.. You just lose consciousness, she'll be fine! Fine! Perfectly fine!"_

The miniature crowd that had appeared dissipated, leaving behind the typical waiting line. Kagami ignored the laughter and cheers as she quickly carried Konata away from the ferris wheel, looking around for somewhere comfortable to stop.

Sitting Konata down on a bench, Kagami pushed the girl's messy hair away and gripped her shoulders. "Konata. Konata!"

She started to shake the girl's shoulders, but stopped when she realized she could injure the frail blue-haired girl. "What do I do.."

Her arms started to shake and her vision started to blur, but she didn't care. With a muffled whimper, she put her head in Konata's lap, closing her eyes as she felt a tear run down her cheek. "Konata.. Konata.."

"Don't cry Kagamin.. I'm fine.." The voice she had longed to hear finally appeared, as if an answer to her prayers. Hope flooded back into her heart as her eyes opened to meet the pair of shining green orbs she loved so much. "Sorry, I took it too far. I only meant to use it to get you to stop kissing me, but it was such a good opportunity.

"Can you forgive me?"

Processing the information, her mind quickly slotted everything into place. She said nothing for a second, before tearing up and burying her face in Konata's shirt.

".. Idiot. D-don't scare me like that! Stupid.. you're such a jerk!" Her words came out muffled and broken up, but they were understandable nonetheless. Konata suddenly felt _really_ bad.

"Kagami.. I'm so sorry.. I won't ever do that again.." Stroking the top of Kagami's head with a gentle hand, Konata did her best to quiet the sobbing of her best friend. "Don't cry.. Don't cry.."

In a quiet voice she repeated it over and over, and her hand continued to run through the purple hair comfortingly. Konata did this until Kagami reached up and grabbed her hand.

"Alright.. I'm fine now." It was still visible that she had been crying, but evidently she was calm enough to speak normally.

"Okay. I'm sorry." Konata apologized with a rueful smile, and her ahoge seemed to nod slowly in agreement. "I shouldn't have done that. Forgive me?"

"I forgive you, dummy. Now come on, let's go." Kagami sat up, then stood up. She offered Konata her hand, pulling her to her feet. "It's really late, let's get back to the train station."

/-/

Konata blinked her eyes open, squinting at the fluorescent white light that greeted her. _"Nn.. worst way to wake up is to one of these stupid white neon lamps.."_

She didn't feel rested, though. Sure, she was comfortable, but that didn't mean she felt like doing anything. With an annoyed grumble, she tried to lift her head but something stopped her from doing so. _"Oh.. train.."_

Slipping her head out from under Kagami's, she rose to her feet and started to nudge the still sleeping girl. "Hey, Kagami.. Kagami, wake up!"

A couple moments later, Kagami stirred and muttered under her breath. "Nn..oo.. five more.. please."

Konata grinned and chuckled to herself. _"It's so out of place with her character that it's adorable!"_  
"Come on, sleepy head, get up! We need to get off the train."

Kagami nodded slowly; Regardless of being half-asleep, she stood up and walked towards the open doors, subconsciously reaching behind her to grab Konata's hand, pulling her along.

They were almost at the door when a man spoke up, addressing them with a polite tone. "Alright ladies, this is the last stop. You might have missed your station, but there's plenty of hotels along the streets here."

"Thanks. Have a good night." Konata replied for them, stepping in front of Kagami. Now she just had to get to a hotel, check in, and they would be able to spend the rest of their night in comfort.

Sleeping, that is.

/-/

 _December 25_

Kagami woke up with her eyes still closed. Her consciousness seemed to be in working order, but she really didn't feel like moving. When she tried, the extreme amount of effort it seemed to require made her drop back onto the mattress, which was surprisingly bouncy.

With a sigh, she gave up on the idea of moving and worked on getting her eyelids to move. After an excessive amount of blinking and squinting, Kagami finally managed to pry her eyes open.

 _"Why do I feel so tired? When did I go to bed, anyways?"_

Feeling something shift against her side, she looked down to see a familiar ball of blue hair. Her split-second of surprise disappeared, and she watched with a smile as Konata sleepily nuzzled into her side, mumbling indistinctly. _"Ah.. Konata is here.."_

It took a while for her to remember where they were; Or rather, it took a while for her to remember where they weren't. Thinking back to last night, she remembered being half-asleep while Konata led her off the train and through an unfamiliar street. _"Probably missed our stop.. This must be a hotel room."_

Having to force herself to look away from the sleeping face of her love, Kagami scanned her surroundings. The room was designed rather interestingly, to say the least. The walls were painted a mottled blue gradient that got darker near the floor, which was painted an even darker blue. The ceiling didn't seem to have any light fixtures, but it shimmered as if she was viewing the surface of the ocean from underwater.

There was a table against the wall on Kagami's side, and a thick blackout curtain was pulled over the window, leaving only a sliver for a narrow beam of light to shine on the opposite wall. The table had various things on it, mainly the purses that belonged to Konata and herself, but there were also tissues, a bottle of sake complete with cups, and smaller containers of..

Reading the label on one of the assorted bottles, Kagami's face lit up a dark red and she hurriedly turned it to face the wall. _"This.. is.."_

"Oh, you're up?" Having just woken up, Konata's eyes remained closed as she lazily put her arms over her head to take in a deep breath and let out a puff of air. "What do you think? All the other good rooms were taken.. we were lucky to get one at all, but this is actually nice.."

Sitting there on the blue water bed, Konata was ironically the perfect image of serenity. The way her hair looked spread out across the pillows and the covers, the absolutely adorable expression she had right after waking up..

Her blush never disappeared, and Kagami found herself staring at the slim girl; She stared at the way her small chest expanded and collapsed when she breathed, at the way her back arced when she stretched, and her..

Warning bells rang in her brain. _"Whoa! Hey!_  
 _"This is dangerous territory!"_  
"Dangerous territory!"

Konata said out of nowhere, managing to sync her speech perfectly with the other's thoughts. Kagami mentally slapped herself for-

"Checking me out?"

Konata took the words right out of Kagami's thoughts, grinning knowingly all the way. After a moment of astonishment, Kagami's hands flew up and worked in tandem with her mouth to explain herself.

"N-no, I wasn't! I was just.. just.." Her voice trailed off and she realized she hadn't thought of a proper excuse. The only cover-up she could muster was to cross her arms and look away, but her flustered behavior gave everything away, especially since Konata was a master of reading her.

"You knooooow, you've probably figured out where we are, right?" Konata shifted herself closer, inch by inch, until she was practically leaning up against Kagami's side.

".. Yes, I know where we are." Answering curtly, she avoided looking at the otaku, knowing exactly what Konata looked like right now; Mischievous eyes and cat-like grin, but maybe the slightest hint of a blush..

"Have you forgotten what people do in here?" Konata lowered her voice with every word, until she her voice was barely audible. Subconsciously, Kagami leaned closer to pick up the words, and she didn't see her mistake until Konata had already made her move, scrambling onto the tsundere's lap.

"H-hey!" Kagami reacted on instinct. "What are you-"

"Shh." Konata put her head on Kagami's shoulder, whispering directly into her ear. "If you're too loud, people will hear you."

"I'm not loud! I'm not even yelling!"

"Just kidding. The walls are always sound-proof, so _no-body-will-hear-us..._ " Konata let her voice trail off seductively as she traced an electrifying finger down Kagami's back.

/-/

Matsuri dug into her covers, trying to escape the awakening that was hunting her down. Unfortunately she was doomed to the slow reparation of her consciousness, and light beared down on her closed eyes.

"Grr.." Growling with irritation, she turned away from the window, pushing her face into her pillow.  
 _"Go away, morning."_

With her cheek pressed against her pillow, she sighed and laid still, waiting for sleep to come and take her back. It always felt like it took its sweet time getting there, but Matsuri continued to wait, knowing it would come eventually.

As fate would have it, the world of dreams was just within her grasp when it was yanked away.

"Are you up yet?" The door burst open, and in came the third oldest of the Hiiragis. "Come on Matsuri, get up! It's Christmas, and you shouldn't even be sleeping in anyways!"

 _"Damnit.."_ Matsuri cursed in her mind, wishing she had something to throw. Fortunately for the infiltrator, the only thing at hand to be used as ammunition was the pillow Matsuri was sleeping on. She wasn't willing to give that up.

"Inori. Go away." With all the menace her drowsy voice could muster, Matsuri half-opened her eyes and glared at the annoyance in her doorway.

"Fine." Inori responded with a smug tone to her voice, then turned around to hide her _almost_ sadistic grin, leaving the door wide open. Matsuri heard her knocking on the room opposite to the one she had just barged into.

"Thank you." Matsuri mumbled into her pillow, sighing with relief.  
 _"Now to sleep some more."_

"Tsukasa?" Inori's voice drifted into her room, and it was layered with sweetness. "Wake up Tsukasa. It's Christmas morning, so come out soon, okay?" She closed the door to the room gently.

"Yeah.. thanks.." Tsukasa replied sleepily, just as the door closed. Right after it did, she yawned and curled back into her blankets. Matsuri could pretty much see it all playing out in her mind, giving her a pang of both jealousy and anger.

 _"You backstabbing little.. curse you Inori.."_

/-/

Inori unlatched the front door, quickly stepping aside when something flew into the hallway. She smiled when she saw it was the familiar blue hair that the Hiiragi family had grown to know so well.

"Good morning! Welcome back you two. How was your date?"

"Yay!" The girl cheered, completely ignoring the question. With Kagami in tow, she walked into the living room, greeting everybody with an enthusiastic wave and a smile.

Konata was especially cheerful today. She was practically glued to the taller yet younger Kagami, tightly wrapped around the girl's arm. Every now and then, she would sneak a longing glance at the face of her soul mate, her eyes twinkling with a unique kind of love.

If she was trying to hide it, she was doing a terrible job. Everybody noticed, and different conclusions jumped into their minds, questioning looks were shot at the pair.

 _"Kona-chan is really happy!"_  
 _"Maybe they proposed?"_  
 _"Their date must have been wonderful!"_  
 _"They had sex. For sure."_

Kagami noticed her girlfriend's doting behavior, and a blush developed on her face as four different sets of eyes all settled on the two of them. Doing her best to appear to be in control of the situation, Kagami smiled and said hello to her family as naturally as she could.

"We had a great time. I barely even recognized Konata under how romantic she was." She teased.

Konata looked up at her with the most adorable pout, which soon turned into a steady grin. "Oh, I've done it all before. You aren't the first girlfriend I've had, after all." Konata didn't react to the astonishment of the other people in the room.

"Who was it?" Seemingly unfazed by the statement, Matsuri's voice rose above the rest of her family's chatter.

"Let me see.." Konata put her hands on her hips, humming as she furrowed her brows in thought. Holding up her hands, she counted off her fingers and started to list names. "Aiko, Tomoyo, Asaga.."

"Hey, those aren't real people!" Matsuri leapt to her feet with a triumphant grin, a finger pointed directly at the otaku. "Gotcha! Can't fool me!"

"Hahah.. Unlike someone else I know, I'm surprised you figured it out so.. quickly.." Konata laughed but she trailed off when she felt the withering glare on her.

"Good one, Konata. That was really funny." Kagami said flatly.

"H-hey, Kagamin.." Konata thought about her next step carefully, not sure whether or not she was improving the situation. Luckily, someone came to her rescue and she didn't have to take the risk.

"Are you jealous, sis?" Tsukasa blurted out. Gasping, she covered her mouth as Kagami raised an eyebrow at her.

"Jealous? Why would I be jealous?" Her voice hid a cutting edge that made her younger sister pale slightly. Bravely, Tsukasa carried on. She started again, quickly warming up to her act.

"Um.. Because you're Kona-chan's special person, right? And Kona-chan is your special person.. I know that I would like to be the only one.  
"Err, I mean that I would like to be the only one to have.. been with..? Uh.. If I had a relationship, being the first person to be with the other person would make me feel really good. I would be a little jealous if there was someone else. So it's okay to be jealous, right?"

Tsukasa stumbled with her words momentarily, but she stated her mind firmly and even Kagami was a bit taken aback at her younger sister's speech.

"If.. If you say so.. I guess I am.. sort of.." Kagami mumbled something indistinct, avoiding eye contact completely.

"Mm? What was that, _Ka-ga-min?_ " Konata pressed, leaning into her girlfriend. Kagami tensed up, a defiant blush lighting up her cheeks.

"Nothing! I'm just glad you aren't easy!" She protested, crossing her arms. Of course, the gesture didn't look correct when one of her arms was still held down at her side.

"No way. You're the only one that has permission to my heart and my body." Konata took it in stride, turning the tides easily.

"First Christmas Eve together, right?" Tadao inquired, deciding it was time to change gears before an issue arose. The enthusiastic nods of his daughter and her first love brought a gentle smile to his face. He turned to his wife, now sporting a grin. "Remember our first Christmas Eve, Miki?"

"Definitely. How could I forget the day you proposed to me?"

"Oh?!" Konata's eyes immediately lit up. This story was new to her. "You proposed to each other on Christmas Eve? That's so romantic!"

"Yep! It had been nine or ten months since we had started dating, and Tadao took me on the ferris wheel.. I remember my heart dropping when he pulled out the black jewelry box.." Miki sighed wistfully, thinking back to the beginning of her married life.

Kagami sighed too.

 _"I remember that feeling.. Although it was a complete misunderstanding."_

"I was so happy!" Miki reminisced, putting her head on her husband's shoulders. He responded with a smile and a side hug.

 _"Yeah.."_ Kagami's subconscious agreed. Right after it did, her cheeks colored and she flushed with embarrassment. _"Wait, I didn't mean it like that!"_

"Kagamin, you're blushing!" Konata grinned as her girlfriend made helpless flustered movements.

"Shut up! It's your fault!" The retort was all she could come up with right now. Kagami was too busy arguing with herself to argue with the otaku at the moment.

"Huh?" Normally Konata was highly resistant to being thrown off guard, but it seemed Kagami had started to find ways around. Confusion was quickly starting to become a more common thing for the blue-haired girl.

"Idiot."

"Eh? What did I do?!"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Geronimo! Here's another chapter, delivered on a Friday! High school is a waste of my time, it's not even challenging.. Notify me if you catch any mistakes or cut off sentences though, because I've been jumping between tabs and stories very often, so I may have missed something I was revising. Tell me what you think of my writing style, the characters. I want feedback on this kinda stuff, so feel free to review! I'll take it to heart, and reply to all non-guest reviews. Feel free to PM me about anything that isn't related to this story too! Follow, favorite, review, PM! I get inspiration from those! And satisfaction!  
TLDR: Enjoy your Labor Day weekend everyone! I know it's Christmas in the story, but there would be too much fluff if I waited to synchronize with reality.**

Sym: Hellooooo everybody, welcome back! We have just had a technical difficulty and very frustrating developments, so today will be rather short. Welcome the Hiiragis Matsuri and Kagami!

Matsuri: Hey, merry Christmas everybody!

Kagami: Yeah, hello!

Sym: Getting started with you, Matsuri, how'd you know that Konata was bluffing about her record?

Matsuri: Oh, that? She's too lovey with Kagami. Plus she always plays dating sims and stuff, so I knew she was pulling it out of that.

Kagami: What do you mean, too lovey?

Matsuri: Don't you think she would've told you about any ex relationships?

Sym: She's right you know. Konata is very honest when it comes to you.

Kagami: W-well, I know that..

Matsuri: Hey, Sym, are they usually like that?

Sym: Hmm? Who's they, and what's that?

Matsuri: Kagami and Konata, being so touchy and lovey and hugging each other so much. I mean I know they're super in love with each other, but they're like extra close now!

Kagami: Uh, no reason. A date does that to people sometimes, you know?

Sym: Yeah. After a date, a couple might feel more comfortable with each other. *winks*

Kagami: Thanks for explaining.. Anyways, Matsuri! You wouldn't know because you've never been on a date before, _riiight_ _?_

Matsuri: Pfft.. I've been on plenty of dates! I have a lot of time now that I'm in college!

Kagami: Yet you haven't introduced anyone to us..

Matsuri: At least it didn't take me three years to notice that someone was in love with me!

Sym: And we'll be ending it here, before technical difficulties or sibling rivalry causes issues. Please review and look forward to the next chapter! See you all in the next chapter's end!


	13. Chapter 13: Of Maids and Mistakes

_"Augh.."_

Her body didn't want to listen to what every logic sensor in her brain was telling her to do. Inori's eyes opened to darkness, her face being pressed into her pillow. Against her own will, she rolled over and the ceiling swam into focus. Minutes passed while she glared at the ceiling as if it was the reason she had woken up.

Eventually she realized there was no point in blaming inanimate objects. Inori pushed the blankets off her body, swinging her legs out of bed with a lethargic groan. Sleepily she made her way out of her room and into the hallway, with a subdued sense of victory when she noticed the bathroom was unoccupied.

As she put a hand on the door and pushed it gently open, she heard light footsteps approach from down the hall. She looked in the direction of the sound, but whoever it was had already passed her. Curiosity piqued, she let go of the door and turned around until she caught sight of..

"Good morning, Inori-sama." The person turned to Inori as if she had just seen her. The respectful greeting given was accompanied with a slight bow. "You're the first one up."

"G'morning." She replied instinctively. If she was surprised, it didn't show on her face. "What's up Konata? Why are you here?"

"I didn't get you guys anything for Christmas, so I'll be working here as a maid for a couple days." Konata explained. "Figured I should show my appreciation in some way.

"I'll be waking up the rest of your sisters. Please wash up and head down to the dining room, breakfast is ready."

/-/

Newspaper in hand, Tadao was there to welcome his four daughters one by one into the kitchen. He greeted them with smiles.

"Good morning girls. Konata made this great breakfast for us, so come dig in!"

The last to enter the room, Konata still managed to grab the most attention. Her outfit was that of what you would expect in a maid. The black dress and white apron went all the way down to her ankles, hiding her black shoes from sight. A white hairband rested on top of her blue hair which covered her whole back, coming to a stop right above the hem of her dress.

Realizing she was staring, Kagami looked away flusteredly, her face painted crimson. Konata grinned back at her, making a rather provactive pose.

"Kagami-sama, checking out the maid? I _am_ bound by contract to submit to whatever orders you give me, but try not to distract me from my work!"

"I don't know what you're talking about. A-anyways, this breakfast looks great! Did you make all of this?" Changing the subject, Kagami looked towards the magnificent layout of breakfast foods. The table itself was covered in a white tablecloth with red trimming, and a glass mason jar filled with water and bright flowers was the decorative centerpiece.

What really caught everyone's attention was not the aesthetic value of the furniture, but the food. Six plates were set around the table, one for each member of the family. Each one had the standard of a stack of pancakes topped with a butter pat and blueberries. Every plate also had slices of fruit and a strip of bacon. Several plates in the middle contained extra servings of food, and a pitcher filled with orange juice stood above the rest of the layout.

"Yeah. I figured that a Western-style breakfast would be a nice change of pace. This is considered normal over in America; They eat like this almost daily." Konata explained, pulling out chairs for the other girls to sit down in.

"You're amazing Konata! This looks really good! How long did it take you to make everything?" Tsukasa asked excitedly, staring at her friend with wide-eyed admiration.

"About an hour or so, really. I only really had to cook the pancakes and the bacon, since the fruit and orange juice are fresh."

"I didn't know we had this tablecloth. Does it belong to you?" Inori ran her hand over the smooth white surface of the table, surprised at the fine texture. "It's smooth.. really well made.."

"It's mine, but not mine." Konata explained cryptically. "My mother made it before I was born. Dad keeps it folded and washed, and we use it every now and then. He says it holds a lot of memories for him. Don't feel bad if you get it dirty, it's easy to wash."

"Why are you here anyways?" Matsuri queried. "And why are you dressed up like a maid?"

Konata smiled, bowing slightly in Matsuri's direction. "Merry Christmas! This is for you guys, since I couldn't get you any presents. I'll be the Hiiragi family's maid for a weekend."

"Isn't it amazing? I finally get a break from doing _all_ the housework by myself!" A new voice joined in the conversation. Walking around the table, Miki took a seat next to Tadao with a smile. "My daughters never help out, and this man here doesn't have a flair for chores. I haven't been able to sit back and spend an entire day relaxing since we got married."

"You don't have to worry, because I'm a professional maid!" Konata cheered, giving her _master_ a polite nod. "Feel free to relax for the weekend. I'll take care of everything."

"Itadakimasu!" The traditional Japanese pre-meal saying was repeated by seven people, and the room started to fill with pleasant conversation.

/-/

"Is everyone in this house planning to leave at the same time? This is too cliche, especially if we're talking about one of those cheesy romance animes.."

Befuddled, Konata started to rant about something or other. Kagami ignored her, instead looking to the reliable ones in the room.

"You four are going to go out?" Her question was directed towards Miki and Tadao, but she gestured inclusively towards the two older sisters of the family.

"Mm hmm." With a mouthful of delicious breakfast, Matsuri could only nod and grunt her agreement. Kagami waited while her hazel-haired sister chewed her food, eventually swallowing and finally answering. "Me and Inori are gonna go meet up with our friends from college. Yes we have friends. And mom and dad are going to-"

"We're going on a date!" Miki interrupted, her face morphing into a huge smile. "Oh, it's been so long since it's been just the two of us. I deserve this." Excitedly, she finished saying her part of the conversation, and she stood up with a hasty farewell. Tadao was practically dragged out of his seat by his wife, who was chattering about getting ready and something or other. He waved and spoke hurriedly, as he knew there'd be no coming back when he passed the door frame.

"Konata, we all seem to have plans for dinner, so could you finish the housework? You're free to go out and do whatever you want after, since none of us will be back until maybe eight."

"Thank you, Tadao-sama. I'll be back before eight." Konata curtsied, then she strode over to the table and balanced empty plates in her arms effortlessly.

"It feels weird when you call our dad with that honorific. Don't you agree Kagami?" Inori asked, hoping she wasn't the only one who thought so.

"Yeah, it really does!" Kagami agreed quickly, relieved she wasn't the only one who thought so. "And the way she calls us that too. I'm not used to this servant master thing."

"Kagami-sama, don't you request me to do this every night?" Eavesdropping on the conversation, Konata couldn't help but yell out from the kitchen. "You always ask me to call you _master_ and you get really into it when we-"

"Whoa! Hey! Be quiet!" Kagami shouted, her face blazing red. When she turned back to look at her three other sisters, the combined vibes of their stares almost staggered her.

"Is that what Kona-chan calls roleplay? Or is it cosplay?" Tsukasa seemed too interested in the general idea to care about the specific situation. It almost felt like she supported the thought. "Can I play too?"

"I don't think so. The kind of _playing_ they do isn't.. really for us.." Inori trailed off, glaring at her younger sister as if it was her fault, indirectly it was her fault. Her gaze was almost disapproving, but Inori just seemed to be amused by this whole thing.

"You mean you two do it every night?" Blunt as ever, Matsuri stated her mind and watched as the twins mimicked each other's blush.

"W-wait, that's what you mean by _play_?" Tsukasa gasped, making a double-take at the door. "D-do mom and dad approve?"

"Hey! Don't give her ideas, idiot." Flustered, she managed to scold Matsuri before quickly reassuring her younger sister. "Tsukasa, Konata was just joking, we never did anything! This is all a misunderstanding!"

"O-oh." Visibly calm now, Tsukasa stopped her panicked actions and stared at her sister.

"Now to deal with the root of the problem.." Kagami muttered grimly, casting a dark look towards the kitchen. Matsuri swallowed dryly at the menacing tone in her younger sister's voice.

Konata set the platter aside, having finished washing the dirty dishes in record time. _"It's like my hands are moving on my own.."_

"This must be the power of the maid costume! Enhanced housework passive ability!" She cheered quietly to herself, revelling in her victory. Her cheerful mood didn't end when Kagami stormed into the kitchen, hands on her hips and annoyance scrawled across her face.

"I just had to deal with one hell of a misunderstanding." Her aggressive tone left no room for argument. "Did you have to go and make that stupid remark?"

"My apologies Kagami-sama." Konata conceded. Needless to say, Kagami was surprised.

"Eh? You aren't going to argue or anything?" The easy surrender was the last thing she expected out of someone known to apologize once in four blue moons.

"No. It was wrong of me for lying about it." Konata explained, the smile disappearing to reveal an apologetic look. The _maid_ bowed, and when she straightened up she was back to her regular smile. "We should participate in a servant master roleplay tonight, so that way I don't have to lie about it again."

"Huh? Hey, you totally twisted that around!"

/-/

Miyuki held the door open for her companions, following them inside after they were all safely within the building. The sudden change of atmosphere from the cold night air to a warm friendly room sent a pleasant shiver down her spine.

"Don't you guys love it when you walk through a door and the temperature just reverses? It's so refreshing." Konata grinned, unintentionally reading Miyuki's mind.

"It is. Although I won't admit to it, I used to enjoy entering and exiting a building over and over, and I got really embarrassed because I would get carried away in front of other people."

"But you just did." Tsukasa pointed out, nothing escaping her straightforward thought process. Miyuki looked at her in confusion for a moment before she realized that the girl was right.

"A-ah.. whoops.."

"Double serving of moe. Looks like I've got my fix for today." Konata stated joyfully, giving Miyuki two thumbs up. Dodging the evitable response from her friends, mainly the tsundere, she turned and headed past the attendant standing between the lobby and dining room. Konata smiled at him then pointed at her group, saying something inaudible. He nodded, smiling and waving her inside.

"Oh yeah, Konata told me she has a part-time job here." Kagami remembered one of the many random details about her girlfriend. A lot of those popped up during their casual talking.

"At a teppanyaki grill? That's a rather odd choice for part-time.." Miyuki wondered, getting a questioning look from her friends. She started to embark on an explanation of her reasoning, effectively kickstarting the conversation.

Eventually they were ushered into the dining room by the attendant, and he pointed them towards a table where a familiar blue-haired girl was standing.

"Welcome to teppanyaki grill! Please have a seat and order any drinks or appetizers or whatever you want." Konata greeted them cheerfully, her large cylindrical hat managing to stay on her head despite her constant, bobbing movement.

The conversation started immediately, with Konata effortlessly juggling the job of cooking and chatting, preparing the food for her companions.

"How'd you come to have a job here, Konata-san?" Miyuki inquired.

"Oh, I need money so I'm always around searching for places to work. I'm balancing about two or three usually, but most of them don't last over a week or two." Konata explained, grabbing a bottle of oil and easily drizzling it over her hot plate in some intricate pattern.

"But why here?"

Konata didn't answer immediately. Soon, the oil ignited and sent a gout of flame into the air, sending a heat wave and awed reaction through the people sitting around the table.

"Because the divines will it so." Konata muttered just loudly enough to be heard, and another burst of fire erupted from the center of the table, singeing the air. When the blaze of the fire died down, it was replaced by the sizzling of vegetables that Konata was spreading across the grill in an overly calm and indifferent manner.

"That's pretty good!" Tsukasa watched in amazement. "How did you get the oil to flame up like that?"

"Trade secrets. My lips are sealed." Her lips formed into an underhanded grin. "Special oil. We call it trick oil. Don't ask me how it works, I just know it does."

"It's pretty dangerous.." Kagami muttered under her breath, but then her face lit up. "Wait, you didn't answer the question. Why do you work here?"

"Ah, so my awesome performance wasn't enough to divert the matter." Konata stated in a low dramatic voice. Her diabolical expression changed into one of smugness. "Well, they wanted someone to fill in the spot because one of the other chefs here wasn't able to make it for a couple days, so I took the job for a couple days. Turns out sales have been increasing ever since I got here, along with positive reviews on service and food quality. Basically, they want me to take up a full-time occupation here since I help their business."

"That's amazing Kona-chan!"

"Will you take the job?"

"For now, yeah. The pay is pretty good, and it doesn't take up all of my time. Plus, it's fun watching people's reactions when they see me. You should see all the love letters I get." Following up, Konata twisted her face into what was presumably that of a customer.  
"This girl is good, a great cook, and she's super cute and sexy at the same time. Marry me! Something like that."

Kagami frowned. "Getting reactions like that should be disturbing, not funny."

"It's funny because the other chefs are jealous of all the attention and the demand I get. Speaking of jealous, you should see what happens when I tell them that I'm not single."

"And?" Kagami prompted, suspicious of where the conversation was leading. Immediately, Konata launched into a series of impersonations, seemingly of a customer and herself.

"What? Ditch him, I can guarantee that I'll make you much happier than that guy ever would!  
"Oh, but it's not a guy, it's a girl!  
" _ **WHAAAAT?!**_  
"Something like that." She finished, grinning wildly at the apathetic, curious, and surprised expressions she received from her friends.

"Is our food ready yet?" Kagami asked in her best monotone.

/-/

".. and I had to stop them or else there might've been a fight."

"Are you sure this is all true?" Kagami disputed the statement with suspicion. The suspected put a hand on her hips, pouting dramatically. Her other hand continued to wield the knife that robotically sliced and pushed things around and doing whatever else Konata was cooking.

"Hey, I'm not lieing you know. He was the one who got mad at the boss for denying my suggestion. I _think_ it was cool of him to protect me, but I'm not sure if he really needed to or not."

"What point is there in arguing with the manager over something like that? And how do you already have this much power within a week?" Shaking her head melodramatically, she had to smile at how ridiculous the entire situation seemed. "I can't believe you managed to start that big of an argument just by suggesting that this should become a cosplay restaurant."

"I thought it was a good idea. People already think I'm cute, so adding cosplay would improve business, right?" Konata reasoned.

"Doesn't cosplay only attract a certain type of people?" Tsukasa inquired with a thoughtful look. Konata stared at her for a moment with a straight-faced expression.

"Who told you that?" The normal tone in her voice was audibly gone, replaced by an unusual mixture of surprise and genuine curiosity. Konata was actually surprised, what a surprise.

"Sis told me. She says that it's part of the reason why your cafe only gets the same customers over and over again." Tsukasa answered honestly.

"Well, I guess you're right. Cosplay is pretty niche now that you mention it." Konata sighed.  
 _"Tsukasa's starting to catch my mistakes much more often now. Either she's getting better, or I'm getting worse, or both."_

"Konata-san, was that intentional?" Miyuki queried uncertainly. "I'm not sure if it's another trick, but that looks like it's starting to burn."

Sure enough, when Konata looked down at her workspace there was a miniature blaze erupting on the grill. Without a single word or change in expression she put out the fire within seconds.

Konata made an annoyed _hmm_ , frowning at the dish she was making.

 _"Yeah, it's me. For sure."_

/-/

Grinning, Konata wiped the oil off her knife and rinsed it in cold water, then flipped it into the air, catching it by the handle and immediately tossing it back up again.

"See? Tastes great, right? It's like I actually work a professional job here."

The approval of her friends was reflected on their faces, and the surprise and delight when they tasted her cooking.

"You realize you just downgraded yourself, right?" Kagami deadpanned. It didn't seem to bother Konata, who waved it off nonchalantly.

"I know, I know, I am a professional. Thank you for your praise, I'm honored!"

Kagami watched her girlfriend uninterestedly. She had learned to treat Konata's pride with indifference, although she couldn't deny that it was a trait of the otaku that had grown on her.

Her attention was caught by the knife, still spinning mesmerizingly as Konata caught it and flipped it back into the air over and over. Something about the display of confidence and hand-eye coordination was starting to disturb her.

While she had been talking, the action of tossing the knife and catching it had started to become routinely familiar to Konata.

In fact, she had almost forgotten it until she caught the knife by the blade. Konata only realized she had cut herself a moment after, because it was colder than it had been the last time she touched it. A short cry of pain escaped her lips as the pain kicked in, causing her to wince and press her hands together, forgetting about the knife which had already been sent back into the air, spinning and arcing downwards without a hand to catch it.

"Konata!" Instinct had warned Kagami in advance, and she was already standing by the time the blade had cut into Konata's hand. As it spun in the air and came down towards the head of blue hair, Konata felt someone grab her by the shoulders and roughly pull her backwards, and she landed on top of them in a heap on the tiled floor.

Reflexively Konata threw her hands back to catch her fall, instantly regretting it as a sharp pain went through the palm of her left hand.

"Oww.." She muttered, clutching at her wound. The knife clattered to the floor in front of her, and Konata yelped, pulling her legs back quickly.

"Kona-chan! Are you okay?!" Tsukasa pushed her chair back, rushing over to help her friend to her feet.

"Where did you get cut?" Miyuki's voice wasn't as panicked, although there was an obvious note of concern in her words.

"Just my hand, thanks to hero Kagamin here!" Konata attempted to sound cheerful, but it didn't work so well when her voice and legs were still shaking.

 _Hero Kagamin_ groaned quietly, propping herself up into a sitting position. She gratefully accepted Miyuki's offered hand, and she was half-lifted to her feet.

"Did you get hurt?" The shakiness in Konata's voice was gone, replaced by worry and concern.

"I'm okay, and I won't ask you that question because I know you just stabbed yourself on accident."

"Heh.. ah, it's fine.. I would've lost my ahoge, but you saved me!" Konata joked, smiling like it was no big deal. It was the opposite of what Kagami wanted to hear.

"And what if I wasn't there? What if I hadn't been there to help you, you almost dropped the knife on your own head for god's sake!" Her voice gave away her rising annoyance. "You shouldn't be playing with knives anyways! It's dangerous! Be more careful!"

"H-hey, now.. Kagami, calm down. I'll be more careful, okay? No more knife tricks for me."

"Idiot."

"Um.. You should get that cleaned up." Tsukasa interjected the argument, pointing at the blood dripping from Konata's cut. Noticing it, Konata immediately pressed her hands together in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

"Excuse me, but could someone please call the manager and someone with first aid?" Miyuki turned to the bystanders, who were watching the incident without words.

"No need. She's right here." Smiling, the manager of the restaurant nodded at Miyuki and then analyzed the situation. "Izumi-san, already causing trouble?"

"Ahaha.. sorry Suzuki-san. I wasn't paying attention." Konata laughed sheepishly.

"No worries. You're a good girl to have around, and I'm sure your friends would agree, albeit in a different context. Lemme fix up your hand, then you guys can go home."

"Oh, we'll pay while you're at it." Kagami brought up, already reaching for her purse when she was stopped by the smiling Suzuki-san.

"Nah, Izumi-san's got you all covered. Consider this on the house, since you're all friends of this little angel here. Even though we won't be seeing each other again, you're all in my good books right now!"

/-/

"Angel? What did you do to earn that title?" Kagami snorted disdainfully and amended her question. "Actually no, what did you _not_ do?"

"You read me too well, Kagami, I'm surprised that you caught that."

"And what did she mean by we won't be seeing her again? Isn't that a little preemptive?"

"Oh yeah, she said that.. I wonder if that's okay. Usually they don't like breaking the fourth wall, but they don't like other characters either.." Konata muttered to herself.

"I don't know, and I don't think I care."

Miyuki had parted with them as soon as they stepped out the door of the restaurant, and that left the twins and the otaku to walk home just the three of them.

Tsukasa, as usual, kept to herself as she knew there was no point in trying to dissuade the two from arguing, nor was there a reason to jump into the crossfire. She was perfectly content with listening and making the occasional comment. It was much easier than actually having a one on one conversation with the bluenette, anyhow.

"You know, this was the worst day of my life." Konata admitted casually. The Hiiragi twins looked at her with surprise, and she continued. "I don't think I've ever cut myself and burnt something in the same cooking session, ever."

"Oh, that's what you mean. Quit it with the vague dialogue." Kagami rolled her eyes. "Then again, I should stop jumping to conclusions because I never know what you actually mean."

"Ah, you're getting so good at taking the words right out of my mouth. I'm proud of you Kagamin!"

/-/

The house would have been practically invisible if not for its silhouette against the sky. It was quiet enough that every step sounded louder than it really was, and breaking the silence felt like a sin.

Unlocking the door, Kagami stepped inside and closed it after they were all in, flicking on a light switch and blinking at the intense brightness.

"Gah! My eyes! Off with the lights, off I say!" Konata cried, bringing her hands up in front of her face. Tsukasa giggled, but the elder twin ignored both of them.

"We have about an hour until the rest of them should be here. I'm going to go take a bath."

Kagami turned into the hallway and out of sight, leaving her girlfriend and her sister to their own.

Glancing at the blue-haired eccentric, Tsukasa noticed how she visibly deflated. Once her older sister had left, Konata practically collapsed. The ever-present smile was gone, her shoulders slumped, and her eyes held a disturbing amount of fatigue and exhaustion. Even the bouncy ahoge looked like it was drooping.

But of course, _visibly_ is relative. To someone who pays a lot of attention to other people, having been shifted into the background more often than most, Tsukasa's ability to read the mood was exceptionally strong. That being said, the change in Konata was barely noticeable- even for Tsukasa.

"Spacing out a bit there, Tsukasa. The way you're staring at me makes me think you're excited to be alone with me or something! Am I looking at a love triangle with me in the center?" Back to her normal perky self, the otaku took the chance to tease her friend with her a cat smile.

"Huh? Oh, no. Nothing like that." She answered absentmindedly, not even blinking at the suggestive theme. The lack of a reaction and the intensity of Tsukasa's curious stare was starting to unnerve Konata.

"Err.. Tsukasa.." She fidgeted nervously, her hands searching desperately for something to do. "Ah, I'm going to go make something to eat! Like, you know, snacks. Mind if I use the kitchen?"

Regardless of her own request, Konata made her way onto the tiled floor of the kitchen and started to search for something edible. Tsukasa went over to the living room, taking a seat but still gazing at her friend intently.

A couple minutes passed by, silent except for Konata's rummaging about. Eventually she came to the living room, setting down a tray of various cookies and other snacks in front of Tsukasa.

"Go ahead and have something to eat for now, I'm going to get changed and I'll be back in a moment."

Once Tsukasa was left alone with the snacks, she distractedly grabbed something from the tray and ate it. She was surprised at the taste of coffee, a flavor that Konata openly admitted to not being a huge fan of.

 _"I wonder what's wrong with Kona-chan.."_

/-/

Returning to the room dressed in her maid costume, Konata was surprised to see that the snacks was left unattended.

"Kona-chan, I'm going to make something real quick. I feel like cooking something, so go ahead and eat those snacks for now." The voice of Tsukasa came from the kitchen, where she was preparing

"Oh, let me help. If you want, I can take over-"

"Kona-chan, just sit down."

Taken aback by the resolve in the words, Konata complied and sat down, automatically reaching for something to eat. ".. _Eh? I don't even like coffee.."_

She had lost track of time and was starting to doze off until she was awoken by the clatter of a plate being placed in front of her.

"Here you go! I worked pretty quickly so it may not be too high quality, but it's hard to mess up this dish."

Nodding her thanks, Konata blinked the sleep out of her eyes and picked up one of the rice balls from the plate.

"It's fine. I can't complain anyways, since you went out of your way to make this." She started to eat, feeling her hunger return with every satisfying bite of the homemade _onigiri_.

She was just about finished with her third rice ball when she realized how fast she was wolfing down the food. Tsukasa was watching her with a look that bordered between amusement and patience. Swallowing her food, Konata made an embarrassed smile.

"Ah, sorry. Guess I'm a bit hungry. Aren't you going to eat?"

"No, I just made enough for you."

"O-oh.. Okay then.. Thanks, but you didn't have to do all this for me."

Tsukasa shook her head. "When did you wake up today?"

Konata was surprised at the change in topic. "When did I wake up..? Around my usual time, I guess.. Actually, a bit earlier, since I had to be here before you guys were up. Maybe five or six in the morning."

"How about when you went to bed last night?" Tsukasa pressed, questioning her friend persistently.

"I was up until like.. Well, I usually go to bed around the same time no matter what day it is." Expertly dodging the question, Konata's success was shortlived. Tsukasa shot her a stern look, instantaneously crushing all her hopes of escape.

"Ah.. I go to bed at two or three." She mumbled.

"Two hours of sleep." Tsukasa brought up the harsh reality and held it in front of Konata's face. "And you didn't eat anything since lunch."

"Lunch.. W-well, I ate breakfast before I left.. and I had lunch too.. I've gone without dinner before, it's not that bad.." Konata lied, trying not to think about the pangs of hunger that had just disappeared.

"And at school, all you have for lunch is a chocolate cornet. What do you eat when you're at home?" Tsukasa continued, not expecting much from the next answer.

"..."

Tsukasa sighed. Konata's lack of a response told her all she needed to know. "You lied about eating breakfast this morning, huh?"

"Well.. err.. ... .. yeah.."

"I'm telling sis."

Konata stared at her friend, open-mouthed and speechless. She wasn't sure when Tsukasa had learned to throw conversational curveballs like this, but now she knew that the so-called _gentler_ of the Hiiragi twins was pretty damn good at this whole interrogation thing. Nothing escaped her analytical gaze, as it seemed.

"Uh? What? Why?"

"Because she needs to know."

"Know what?"

Speak of the devil, here she was now. Finished with her bath, Kagami was greeted by a particular sight that she would've never thought to ever happen.

"This is new. Why are you two switched?" Sitting down between the two, she waited with a raised eyebrow as her sister stared her girlfriend down.

"Well, Kagami, we were just talking about my.. quirks?"

"I know. I was here for a couple minutes.

"Oh."

"How many hours of sleep did you get last night?" Tsukasa prompted, putting herself in verbal dominance of the conversation. Konata realized this and she wondered when Tsukasa had managed to rival herself in verbal wit.

".. Two.."

"What did you eat today?"

"Lunch, a cookie, and the onigiri you made for me.."

Tsukasa looked at Kagami with a face that no doubt meant _do you even need me to explain?_

"Konata.." The tsundere stared straight-faced at her girlfriend, who looked away casually.

"What's up?"

"We need to talk."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Another chapter out within a couple days? Reminds me of how I was when I started this story. Welcome back to the world of constant updates, please enjoy your stay as it will not last long. The end might feel a bit rushed or lacking because I'm tired and I want to sleep, but please tell me what you think with reviews and PM me about whatever. I love your reviews and favorites and follows because it makes me feel special =3 Thank you all!**

Sym: You will not believe what we have in store for the Chapter's End today folks, please welcome our guest stars Akira Kogami and Minoru Shiraishi!

Akira: Hello everybody! I'm so glad to be here, thank you all very much!

Minoru: I'm grateful that I have the chance to be on this show with these two amazing stars!

Sym: I wouldn't go as far as calling myself a star, but it certainly is a wonder to have you two here today!

Minoru: I'm sure it is Sym! Both of us are grateful for the offer.

Akira: Yeah, but what's up with the other dozen chapters? Did your higher-ups seriously leave us out? They didn't even mention my NAME in that entire FIFTY THOUSAND WORDS!

Sym: Ah, but you misunderstand our intentions. The story here is revolved around Konata and Kagami, and it would be a lot of work to incorporate many other characters, so we stuck with the bare minimum.

Akira: What, so we aren't important? Are you really trying to say that I'm not a fucking star?!

Minoru: Ah, Akira-sama, he isn't finished! Please let him continue!

Sym: Thank you Akira. So, you're outraged that you haven't starred on the show right?

Akira: Hell yes I am! I'm pretty fucking pissed!

Sym: Would you prefer to be included in as a background character?

Akira: As a side character? What the fuck, of course not!

Sym: I believe that you would be better off with your own story. The rest of the cast can be clumped together into a story, but it would be much stronger if you were to have your own show, right? One where you're the only star, so your spotlight cannot be stolen! You see where I'm going?

Akira: Eh? You're actually right. I do deserve to be the main star of the show, huh?

Minoru: You have a great point Sym! Akira has amazing potential, but it's so limited when the authorities limit her to a background and bonus character! Akira, would you like for me to help you search out a producer right now?

Akira: Yeah, get on it! I can't believe it, my own show.. my own story..

Sym: It was a great experience having you two with us today, but we're all out of time. On three?

Sym: 1..

Minoru: 2..

Akira: 3!

 **BYE-NEE~!**


	14. Chapter 14: With Awakening, Regeneration

Through a haze of drowsiness thicker than the fabric bundled on top of her, Kagami heard the low creak of the door being gently pushed open. Then again it was more likely she had sensed it rather than heard it, since her head was buried in her pillow and her blankets were piled around her. For all this sound-proofing, it didn't prevent the sounds from breaching her slumber.

"Nn.." Already trying to worm her way further underneath the covers she groaned quietly to herself, trying to ignore the voice that was making an attempt to steal away the warmth of her sleep and her bed.

"Sis! Are you awake?" A lilac head of hair appeared in her doorframe, with a voice that was annoyingly agreeable for this time of morning. On top of that, it was her beloved, oh-so innocent younger sister.

"No." The curt response was the closest thing to friendliness she could manage. Even so, she felt a sting of guilt at how harsh her words sounded.

"Oh. Okay." Tsukasa accepted the answer without question, and she disappeared from the doorway to return to the main room, leaving her older sister to herself.

A couple minutes passed as she lay there, wanting to get up but lacking the initiative to do so. Her mind had just about drifted back to sleep, but her fall to unconsciousness was stopped by a sudden change in the bed's weight distribution. To say it plainly, someone slid underneath the covers behind her.

"Hn..?" Her eyes remained closed while her mind automatically made the most logical, and most preferable, assumption. "Oh, Konata.."

"Uh.."

Rolling over, Kagami automatically reached out and drew her the presence closer. Sleepily she moved her face closer, brushing lips with her girlfriend.

 _Konata's_ reaction was peculiar, to say the least. When their lips touched, her body suddenly tensed up, and she gasped quietly, recoiling as if splashed with cold water.

"Ah! W-wait!" There were two things about the voice that disturbed her. One, it was filled with surprise and panic. Two, it wasn't Konata's.

Needless to say, Kagami woke up quite quickly.

"H-hey?! Wh..?" Her consciousness snapped into place, and her focus followed soon after. As her mind was set ablaze with confusion, her eyes fell upon the last person she had expected to see in bed with her.

"U-Um.. s-sorry sis.." Mumbling a desperate excuse, Tsukasa fled the scene with crimson cheeks. Left behind to her own devices once again, the other twin stared at the empty space in with wide eyes. Realization struck her like a battering ram, a more effective wake-up call than anything else she'd ever experienced.

 _"Ohh.. damn it."_

/-/

"Morning, Kagamin~!" Throwing herself around the new arrival, Konata cheered loudly as she made her girlfriend's entrance known. An audibly nervous squeak was heard from somewhere past the bluenette, and it sounded very much like Tsukasa.

Not returning the greeting with equal cheer, Kagami put her hands on the otaku's shoulders, holding her back at arm's length. The look in her eyes was meant to wither even the most vivacious flower. Fortunately Konata had built up a resistance to the effects of the hostile glare, although she still felt a disconcerting chill settle in the air.

"Konata.."

"Yes, Kagamin?" Responding in the same cheery tone of voice as before, Konata repeated the nickname for the second time in a row. By now, Kagami had realized the redundant usage of the pet name, along with the innocent act, was a sign that even the otaku had realized she was in trouble.

"We need to talk."

"Yeah."

"Start talking."

"Okay." Konata hid a smile of amusement at the cutting edge exchange, minimal and directly to the point. "I never thought you were the type to sleep in, though. Isn't it usually Tsukasa who has to be woken up?"

At the mention of her name, Tsukasa glanced up at the two standing in the living room. Since she was working in the kitchen at the moment preparing breakfast for the rest of the household, the purple-haired girl decided not to comment. Not that there was a point to making interjections when her sister and Konata got into it.

"Usually. I sleep in every now and then, and it's okay for me because it's a luxury. For Tsukasa, it's just being lazy."

There were times when Tsukasa wanted to say something, of course. This was one of them, but it was already out of her reach to speak up..

"Okay, now that all of that is resolved.." Smiling like a cat, Konata made a grab for the reins, trying to steer the conversation away from the topic, which wasn't really resolved. Her attempt was instantaneously sniped by a tsundere's skeptical glare.

"Not so fast. You set us up, didn't you?" Without a trace of doubt in her voice, Kagami had pretty much just put forward a rhetorical question. As expected, Konata didn't deny the idea, while she didn't agree either.

"Did you think it was me? Did you kiss her?" Konata bounced on her tiptoes, her hair and face rising level to Kagami's before sinking down again. A mischievous grin formed on her lips as the girl's blue eyes darted back on forth and a deep red color swiftly covering her cheeks.

"W-well, I was.. half-asleep. I couldn't tell if it was you or not." Resisting the urge to slap herself, Kagami nearly cursed at how bad the excuse was.  
 _"That was virtually self-incrimination! You're already awake, think before you speak Kagami!"_

Catching the loose thread and unraveling Kagami's precious lifeline, Konata quickly shifted through her memories, filing through an intricate collection of anime and details, including the many tropes and behaviors she had learned through her way of life. Picking out one that fit the situation, she equipped it, holding her clasped hands in front of her and tilting her head slightly to the side.

"But you thought it was me.. so you kissed your sister?" Her voice changed to something akin to a young girl's, imbued with both innocence and surprise. "W-well, if she's okay with it, then.."

"No. Stop that!" Kagami muttered nervously, aware that her younger sister was watching them intently. Although she was limited to using her unfocused peripheral vision, it was impossible to miss the color of the girl's face. On top of that, Tsukasa's flustered manner was painfully obvious in the way that she was frequently dropping things and fumbling her technique with the kitchenware.  
 _"I'm just glad that Matsuri and Inori aren't here.."_

"I don't mind, you know.." Konata ignored the frantic behavior, instead continuing on with her act. "I'm not j-jealous! Or anything! I can share you with your sister.. and my dad.. and-"

"I said stop! Seriously!" Breaking underneath the net of tension, Kagami gave in and pleaded to her psychological captor. "Fine, we _accidentally_ kissed, but it wasn't romantic or anything!I thought it was you, alright? Sorry, Tsukasa. I hope I didn't scare you."

"Um.. It's okay. As long as it was an accident.. I just don't love you like _that_.."

"Poor Kagamin.. All she wanted was to kiss me. Now I feel bad." Konata's face fell, and she seemed to shrink a couple centimeters shorter. The depressed aura around the bluenette was nearly enough to freeze Kagami in place, even though it was obviously fake.

"It's your fault. Anyways, you.." Abruptly stopping and frowning, she decided not to state her mind on the matter. As much as she wanted it, she couldn't just tell Konata that-

"That you still want to kiss me?" The close to perfect impersonation of Kagami's voice startled her out of her monologue. She met the cat-like smile with a mixture of surprise and annoyance.

"How did you-"

"It wasn't a guess, so please don't ask that question. Instead, ask me about how I mimicked your voice." Konata advised enthusiastically, nodding her head several times. The question went unasked.

"You're annoying." Kagami stated flatly. The insult bounced off of Konata's reflective shield of effervescence.

"Whatever. Kiss me, Kagamin!"

Shooting the grinning bluenette a dubious look, she paused for a moment and considered the suggestion seriously. Konata waited for a few moments, but her patience dissolved and she gave into the urge to jump up and throw her arms around her girlfriend's neck to kiss her passionately for a couple seconds before pulling back.

"There, I did it myself. How was that for a good morning kiss?" Her face was level and inches away from Kagami's, leaving her feet floating above the floor.

".. It was alright." The tsundere admitted this with reluctance, a roll of her eyes, and a streak of light pink across her cheeks.

"Playing hard to get?" Konata pouted. Resting her head on Kagami's shoulders she made it clear that there she had no intention of getting off.

Despite enjoying the physical contact, Kagami sighed loudly. She made her typical complaints, but didn't make an effort to remove the girl clinging to her.

"I can't sit down like this, and I'm not going to stand up while everybody else in this house sits down to eat."

"I can sit on your lap?" It was more of a statement than a question, but Konata made sure to use a questioning tone for the reason of sounding politer.

"Do you have to? And aren't you being a maid or something?" Her mind flew to the prospect of having Konata in her lap, and her blush returned in an even darker shade.

"Oh, about that.. Your sister is mean!" Konata whined pathetically. A raised eyebrow from Kagami was all it took for Tsukasa to spill.

"S-sorry Kona-chan.. I don't want you to work because of your hand, that's all.."

"What if I wanted to work? Can I at least carry things?"

"I'll do all the work today.. it's alright."

"Alright for you, maybe.."

Konata turned back to her girlfriend with a playful smile. "And so, proof that your sister is secretly mean and doesn't like me."

"Tsukasa, let Konata do all the work. She doesn't need help, she's capable of doing everything by herself."

"W-wait, my hand still hurts!"

"Sure it does.."

 _"Are they serious or just joking? Kona-chan sounds like she's joking, but she could be serious about wanting to do something.. And sis, she sounds serious, but I can't tell when it's sarcasm or not.."_

Tsukasa was still trying to figure out how to respond when she was saved by the arrival of a certain head of light brown hair.

"Morning, lovebirds. Morning, smaller sister of mine." Matsuri greeted them casually, walking past two without even batting an eye. She dropped onto the sofa, pulling out her phone and holding it above her head, tapping away at whatever it was she was doing.

"Good morning, sis!" Tsukasa returned the greeting cheerfully, making a note to give the brunette a proper thank you later.

"What's cookin'? And who's cooking? Is that Tsukasa in the kitchen?" Feigning surprise, Matsuri dangled her arms over the sofa and looked between her the girl in the kitchen and the girl hanging off of Kagami's shoulders. "Wasn't Konata supposed to be the maid or something?"

"I blocked a sword strike with my hand, and now I need to let my health points recover." Konata gave her version of the story.

"She tried to do knife tricks, and she caught it by the blade." Kagami cut in with the true story.

Matsuri blinked a couple times as it sank in, then turned away and sank down to unsuccessfully hide her laughter.

"Hey, it's not funny!" Kagami sent a glare towards the sofa, scathing at how her sister found Konata's injury to be a source of joy.

It was all she could manage before she broke into giggles again. She didn't consider herself a sadist or something alike to that, and she definitely wasn't laughing at the fact that the midget sliced herself; In all honesty she had nearly forgotten about the knife, sword, whatever it was. As for the punchline, even Matsuri wasn't _completely_ sure of where it was. All that really stuck out to her was that something about their position and Kagami's deadpan rebuttal was apparently very funny.

"Nono, no.. that's not it!" Her defense wasn't very effective anyways, as wide-eyes and innocence weren't one of Matsuri's strong suits.

"Are you actually related to me? I hope we aren't actually sisters."

"Kagami, that's a bit heartless.. even for your standards, haha.."

/-/

"What kind of knife was it?"

The question was brought up by Inori during breakfast, when all six members of the family, plus one, were gathered around the table. The household only had six chairs at the dinner table, so the problem of that was easily solved by Konata's previous suggestion of her sitting on Kagami's lap. Following a great deal of other suggestions and protesting, the tsundere had given in, still blushing profusely.

Having just finished her story, complete with a dramatic reveal of her bandaged hand, Konata was sort of taken aback at the question which- in all honesty- should've been the first one to have been asked.

"Oh, hm.." Konata put her injured hand under her chin, frowning thoughtfully as she cast her memory back to the incident. "Think it was a _santoku._ "

"Hm? Three uses?" Not familiar with the term, Kagami raised an eyebrow. Her indirect question wasn't answered, however.

"What?! You were tossing that around?!" Disbelief was swimming in her voice as Inori conjured a mental picture of the knife in question; The blade was longer and thicker than the handle, making it almost like a miniature cleaver, and beveled to an edge as sharp as a paper cutter. Santoku knives were used for three main purposes: Slicing, dicing, and mincing, hence its namesake _three uses_.

"Heh.. I sort of.. spaced out."

Inori shut her eyes and blew out through her teeth. "For someone so good at cooking, you sure are stupid. You're lucky you didn't lose your whole hand!"

"Kagami told me the same thing! You two have the same train of thought!"

" **It's less of us being alike, and more of you being an idiot**." Matching each other's words, Kagami and Inori stated their minds in unison. After a disconcerted silence they exchanged a glance with each other, surprise evident in their expressions.

"Ah, now that was an anime cliche that rarely happens in reality.. I could hug both of you right now!" Flickering between the two sisters, her eyes sparked with desire diluted by pleasant surprise.

"Don't change the subject." The tsundere turned her glare on the bluenette.

"But there's nothing else to talk about, unless you want to hear how much blood there was or how bad it hurts. It isn't infected, Suzuki-san cleaned it for me before I left." Before she could go into detail, Konata was stopped from her rambling by a gentle yet firm hand on top of her head.

"Be quiet."

"But Kagami!"

Miki looked on fondly, watching her second youngest daughter with a smile.

 _"Kagami.. Do you remember how you were before entering high school? Do you even realize how much you've changed?"_

Her smile didn't fade, nor did her eyes look away from the interaction between her daughter and Konata. It was like they were working together and against each other at the same time, maintaining a whirlwind of rapidfire question and answer, riposte and counter. Their standard of casual conversation would be considered supernal to anyone else, the verbal equivalent of a paintball fight between two master sharpshooters of empyreal skill, each one keeping up with the other until a mistake was made, at which point the battle would quickly spiral into the hands of the victor.

"Honey, you're staring."

Her thoughts were broken by the gentle voice of the brown-haired man sitting next to her. She gave him a sideways glance, silently thanking him for the warning.

"They've grown. All of them." Tadao didn't look directly at her, but Miki could see the twinkle in his eyes and the smile on his lips.

"It's all thanks to having a great father."

"Which really isn't true, but _whatever!_ " Matsuri's voice rose above the others, an effect of having a well-trained sense of selective hearing. Being the mother of four girls, it was almost like a sixth sense, Miki's ability to pick out specific conversations both at will and subconsciously.

She had instinctively started to open her mouth to berate her daughter for the rude words, but her attention was stolen by a light touch on her shoulder.

 _Wait,_ was the message swimming inside the green irises. Miki blinked several times before she turned away from Konata to listen into the conversation, which she noticed was between the two older daughters in the family.

".. Really? I didn't know that.." The voice of Matsuri rang with surprise and dismay. She seemed to have deflated a little bit, mainly the balloon that was her pride.

"I can't believe you never knew that. Science and experience have both proved that curry tastes better the next day. You've even had leftover curry, how did you not know this already?" Inori wasted no time in showboating her victory, piling her words on top of a rather dejected looking hazel girl.

 _"Ah.. I jumped to conclusions."_ Turning back to the blue-haired girl with an apologetic look, she got nothing but a smile in return. _"For whatever sixth sense I have, it doesn't look like I'll top her anytime soon."_

/-/

Dropping onto the bed with a loud exhausted sigh, Konata rolled onto her stomach and lay face down in the sheets.

"Ahh! I'm so tired.."

"Tired? You just ate breakfast! And it's not even noon yet!"

Rolling her eyes with a loud exasperated sigh, Kagami grabbed a book from the table and sat with her back to the bed.

"Tsukasa is doing all the work anyways, so you of all people shouldn't be so lazy."

"It's her fault for not letting me do my job.."

Konata crawled over the the foot of the bed, reaching over the edge to grab at the beige and cerulean striped bag she had brought with her a day ago.

"You know, I wonder if my dad is lonely. He hasn't had anyone to grope except Yutaka for the past day or so."

"Don't joke about that kind of stuff, and leave your cousin out of it."

Kagami looked up at the right moment to see her blue-haired friend's eyes light up as she found what she was looking for: the ubiquitous device that was never missing from Konata's kit.

"Do you ever leave that thing at home? Isn't a DS a kid's toy now?"

"Kagami! How could you say such a thing?! Don't judge it by its fanbase, judge it by the quality of its games!"

She popped open the lid of her console and watched the screen come to life before her eyes.

"After all, you would still eat candy if it was announced to be for children world-wide, right? My sweet Kagamin couldn't give up on her sweets that easily!"

"When you put it that way, I guess you're right. My sweet tooth wouldn't be happy if I just gave up on it."

Time ticked onwards, and boredom was staved away simply by being in good company. Though their personalities were polar opposites, there truly wasn't a person in the world who would be able to substitute for the one or the other.

"Hey, Konata.. Have you noticed how we don't really act like we're in a relationship?"

"Uhh.. What do you mean by that?"

Konata's eyes strayed away from her flashing screen to land on the head of lavender-purple hair. Her foresight kicked in to tell her that the conversation would merit a bit more attention than usual; She closed her handheld console, laying it down to her side.

"Well, I feel like.. as a.. couple, we haven't really changed. Since we met."

"Go on."

"We don't do a lot of the stuff that you'd think should be done by two people who are dating. I mean, we go on dates and give gifts to each other and we've.. It just sort of feels like we're still friends."

"Isn't that what we are, Kagamin? Friends with benefits!"

Konata's neutral expression temporarily morphed into a grin as took advantage of the opening. It only lasted for about a moment, because the expression melted off her face when Kagami turned around with a very painful look in her eyes.

 _"Oh no.. I get the feeling that I shouldn't have said that.."_

"Is that.. all I am to you?"

Feeling her heart shudder and sink with the sudden impact of a sharp, penetrating spear of guilt and regret, Konata's mouth moved quicker than her mind to fix her mistake.

"N-no! I don't really mean that Kagami! I wasn't serious! Please, I'm sorry I said it, please!"

"Are you.. really sure about that? Give me a reason I shouldn't just walk out right now.."

"Yeah! I am! You mean so much to me Kagami! Don't leave, don't leave!"

When she got no reply, her chest was filled with an empty feeling. Tears started to form in her eyes and they blurred her sight of the back of Kagami's head of purple hair.

 _"No.. Nooooo, why did I have to say that? Why?!"_

A sob started to rise in her throat, and the only thing she could do to slow it down was to curl up and push her face into her knees.

 _"Kagami.. please don't leave.. please.. I said I'm sorry, I really mean it, I want to say it again but I can't!"_

"I-I may have taken it.. a bit too far.. Konata.."

Through a thick cloud of self-critical thoughts, Konata dully sensed someone sit on the bed next to her. She felt a pair of hands touch her, hold her, lift her up from her fetal position. A quiet gasp and a faint glimmer of hope sparked in her chest as Kagami, for that was the only other person in the room, then wrapped her in a tight embrace.

"Konata, I wasn't planning on leaving. I wasn't even mad in the first place."

"..."

"I'm sorry that I scared you.. I didn't actually mean to make you cry. All I was trying to do was get back at you for your joke."

".. S-so.. Then, you aren't.."

Everything clicked into place within Konata's mind. The weight in her chest lifted, the cloud on her mind faded away, but her vision was still unclear through a veil of tears. They broke and streamed down her face as she sniffled and opened her mouth just a bit to draw in a shaky breath.

"Ka-ga-miiiiiiii!"

Letting her feelings be known, Konata emphasized every syllable of the name with a firm, but not painful, fist to the girl's chest. Following her initial shout, she buried her face right where she had just struck three times, openly sobbing while her complaints came out muffled.

"Do you know how I felt? I thought you were actually going to leave! I thought it was all my fault, and it was all a joke to you! I even said I was sorry and asked you not to leave, and you didn't say anything! Do you know how scared I was?!

"Stupid, stupid Kagami. I can't believe you did that. It's okay to joke around, but you can't just do something like that and expect it to be okay! I hope you feel bad, because you should! You should feel terrible for doing that to me!

"I was so scared Kagami! I thought you were gonna leave! I really thought I had screwed up, I hated myself for making that joke! You know you're worth more than that to me, you know that I would give everything for you.. I would do anything you wanted me to do! I can't believe you actually thought I was telling the truth when I said that!"

Kagami waited and listened to the girl, not catching every word as Konata was speaking very quickly, but hearing most of it. She knew she was in the wrong and she felt terrible about it, so she patiently accepted every guilt and complaint as retribution.

 _"I hope she forgives me.."_

Once she had gotten it all out, Konata sniffled and fell silent, her chest heaving with exertion.

"I'm sorry Konata.. I really didn't think that through, huh? I know that I mean a lot to you, and I would never believe you if you tried to tell me otherwise. You know that I love you too much to just give up like that. It was my fault for pushing it too far, so please accept my apology.. Okay?"

Konata lifted her tearstained face from Kagami's chest, looking up at the pair of worried blue eyes and pouting cutely, but albeit unconvincingly.

"This is all your fault, you idiot. It's because of you that I'm like this."

"I know, I'm sorry.."

"I hate you."

"I love you too, Konata."

"Make me feel better."

It was obvious from the way she huffed and turned away that Konata was still miffed. Although she had barely any experience with relationships, Kagami was still able to tell where the situation was leading.

 _"Well.. kiss and make up, right?"_

With that thought in mind, Kagami cupped her hands around her girlfriend's puffy cheeks. She met no resistance as she gently turned Konata to face her.

"Just because you deserve it. Hopefully this is a good way to start making it up to you?"

Kagami blinked a couple times, and a light blush developed on her cheeks from the warmth and how close their faces were. Pushing away her embarrassment for the time being, she kept her focus directly on Konata's glistening emeralds, moving in for the kiss.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Insert something between a whoa and a sigh. Writing this chapter, had a lot of ups and downs. Every now and then the creativity would flow and I would be able to throw out a scene or a couple, but I usually end up just watching anime or youtube and playing games.. Sorry for being so lazy!**

 **Anyways, had some trouble writing through the last bits of this chapter. If you noticed during the final scene with our two characters, it might have seemed different from previous chapters and scenes. Please tell me what you think of this new style! In my personal opinion, I feel like it makes the story appear cleaner and easier to read. Of course I'm the writer, not necessarily the reader, so "I want YOU!" to give me your opinions on this! Is this new style of writing a keeper? Or would you prefer the other style?!**

 **Got questions for me to answer? Answers for my questions? Compliments and criticism, suggestions and comments, flames and any other sort of positive or negative feedback? Please leave a review! Also PM me! Follow for alerts on when I decide to update, and favorite to make me feel successful! On with the show!**

Sym: Now that the author has all that out of the way, it's my turn to take the spotlight with my beautiful partner, Miyuki!

Miyuki: Hehe.. Thank you for the compliment, Sym. I don't mean to sound conceited, but many people do comment on my appearance..

Sym: This topic is very delicate, but being popular or generally well-known for something can be a pain at times. If your reputation sets the bar too high and you can't reach it all the time, it really does start to drop you below-average if you know what I'm saying.

Miyuki: Doesn't it? Myself, I have no personal experience with this, but I can sympathize how it would feel to not live up to your own reputation. It's lucky to be gifted and talented with beauty and intelligence, or whatever natural skills a person may get. There are flaws to being upper-class as well, but jealousy and stereotyping of the upper-class can make people blind to them.

Sym: Definitely. I hope you don't mind me changing the topic, but there's more on our agenda, so we can't talk all day.

Miyuki: That's understandable. Please continue, Sym.

Sym: Alright. I'd like to hear your personal opinion about this; Being a bystander most of the time, you've probably noticed more things about Kagami and Konata than they have themselves, and I think I can safely assume that you and Tsukasa can relate to each other, but how do you feel about being a supporting character, for lack of a better phrase?

Miyuki: When you say supporting character, are you talking about how I'm usually in the background most of the time?

Sym: Yeah. Those two have a habit of taking the spotlight, and it does appear that you and pretty much everybody else are sent to the background.

Miyuki: I cannot decide if I enjoy or dislike being on the sidelines. In Western culture, pros and cons is a term I can use to describe it. You are correct in saying that I've become adept at observation, especially when it comes to things like atmosphere and mood. Not having the attention focused on me helps me notice things, so that's a benefit. However, there are times when I would really like to interject to make comments or ask questions, but it's just very difficult to find a good place to do so.

Sym: Right? When they team up, it's hard to find a chink in their armor.. Uh, what I mean by that is, there's barely any opportunities that leave room or time for someone else to join in the conversation. So tough to keep up with them when they start!

Miyuki: I couldn't agree more!

Sym: The ending show has been dragging on for a while, so I'd like to bid you all adieu and thank you! Miyuki, thank you for joining us here today, and we'll see you all in the next chapter!

 **Bye-nii~!**


	15. Chapter 15: An Invitation

**A/N**  
 **Yes, I'm going to try out timestamps. No, I'm not going to add it into previous chapters.**  
 **This is on the same day as yesterday, by the by.**

Takara Household [12:00 PM]

Miyuki's eyes flashed with worry as she reached out and took the bandaged hand gingerly, making sure to avoid putting pressure on the palm.

"Oh my.. what size is the cut?" She asked, unable to see any trace of the injury through the thick white material.

"It's not that bad.. Small cut, happens all the time. It's not very deep anyways!" Konata shrugged it off with a nonchalant grin, and Kagami placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and another on the top of her head, flattening the _ahoge_ bouncing around.

"What she meant to say was the cut is _only_ about two centimeters deep and _only_ the length of her entire palm." She corrected, causing the older girl to look up with a pout.

"What? It really isn't that bad!"

Miyuki looked down at the hand she was holding. She placed a finger on the white bandages in the center of Konata's palm and pressed down firmly.

"Oww! Yuki-chan, that hurts!" Konata yanked her hand out of the pink-haired girl's light grip, holding it to her chest with her other hand.

"Ah! S-sorry Konata-san, I didn't think it would hurt that bad!" Miyuki apologized hastily, wondering if she should've used less force.

"Serves her right, Miyuki, but be a bit more careful. Konata, there's no point to lying when your left hand is all but disabled." Kagami sighed, rubbing the head of blue hair affectionately.

"Aren't you left-handed, Kona-chan? Will you be okay?" Having been silent until just then, Tsukasa looked at her shorter friend with a questioning gaze.  
 _"I wonder if Kona-chan is clumsy with her right hand.."_

"I'm ambidextrous, remember?" Konata reminded her, grinning wickedly before putting her mouth next to Kagami's ear and lowering her voice to a stage whisper (which everybody could still hear, of course).  
"Not to worry Kagamin, I can still pleasure you just as well with my right hand!"

Blushing wildly, Kagami stuttered and nearly tripped, even though she was standing still. Her face was colored carmine as her lips fumbled over her words, unable to form coherent speech.

"Awh, you're so cute when you're like this, Ka-ga-min!" The only one unfazed by the whole thing was obviously Konata, who seemed rather pleased at how she had brought a shocked silence down upon the entire group.

"Pf.. tch.. argh! Shush!" Finally finding a fragment of her voice, Kagami put a hand over Konata's mouth, silencing the girl but not her smile. You could still tell from the inclination of her face that she was grinning like a maniac.

"Erm.. Oh, I apologize for being such an impolite host. I'll go get some snacks!" Miyuki rushed the words out of her mouth in a hurry, turning and scampering off towards the kitchen. Tsukasa followed suit, mumbling something about tea.

/-/

"Oh yeah, you're friends with that one girl, right?" Konata brought the question up during a lull in the conversation a couple minutes after the tray had been cleared of sweets.  
"The _kuudere_?"

"Huh? _Kuu_.. _dere_?" Unfamiliar with the term, Miyuki's eyebrows came together as she tried to piece together the meaning of the word. She had almost got it when Konata interrupted her thoughts, giving her a (much more useful) trait about the mystery subject.

"Mint hair, blue eyes, flat as a board?" The otaku put forth the first three things she remembered about the physical features of the girl.

"Oh.. succinct as usual, Konata-san.." Miyuki sweatdropped.  
"I believe you're talking about Minami-san? Minami Iwasaki, the health representative from your cousin's class?"

"Yeah, yeah, that's her! Brilliant as always, Miwiki-sama!" Konata gave the girl a thumbs up and a feline grin.

"Eh? Miwiki-sama?" Unfamiliar with the nickname, Tsukasa glanced around at the group, silently inquiring into the question. She got her answer from her sister, who was strangely acquainted with the topic.

"Oh, it's because of how Miyuki is so smart. She seems like there's nothing she doesn't know, so some people call her Miwiki because of how she's like this one website that has information on practically everything." Kagami explained to her sister, shrugging at the end as if it was common knowledge.

"Uh..? How did you know that, Kagami? I'm the only one who knows about that nickname, and even I rarely use it.."

"H-huh? Oh.. well.. lucky guess? I mean, it's not like it was that obscure, right? Even Tsukasa could figure that out, if you gave her some time."

"Hmm." Konata stared at Kagami for a second more, but she accepted the excuse, smiling and hugging her girlfriend tightly.  
"You can be brilliant too, Kagamin! Don't be jealous!"

"I'm not jealous. If anyone, Miyuki should be jealous that you belong to me.." She teased, feeling a great sense of satisfaction when the bluenette's face turned dark red.

"W.. Hey!" Konata protested with a mixture of surprise and embarrassment.

"I'm a little jealous of you, Kagami-san." Miyuki confessed.  
"It's not that I have romantic inclinations towards Konata-san, but you've already found someone that will be by your side forever.."

"I know how you feel Yuki-chan! It's like sis and Kona were made for each other, too! They get along so easily, and they're really cute together!" Tsukasa squealed, temporarily forgetting where she was as she talked about her sister's relationship with her friend.

For some reason, it was rather embarrassing for the two of them to listen to Tsukasa talk about their relationship. Kagami felt her cheeks warm up, and she looked sidelong at Konata.

"Are we really? I wouldn't think of describing us as cute.."

"Of course, Kagamin! You're cute, I'm cute, we're cute! Here, hug me!"

Konata nuzzled against her girlfriend's side, getting a surprised and flustered reaction for a moment before Kagami gave up and put both arms around her. Konata almost purred involuntarily, but she caught herself just in time. She closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of the arms around her spread up to her face as she snuggled deeper into the embrace.

"Mm.. I guess you're right, Konata.."

/-/

"Thank you, Takara-san. I hope we won't trouble you."

"Oh, relax Minami-chan! You say that every time you come here.. Think of us as your second family! You are always welcome in my house, don't be so formal. And that goes for you too, Yutaka-chan!"

Yutaka nodded, smiled, and thanked the pink-haired lady as she stepped in through the door. She made her way towards the living room, where the sound of pleasant chatter could be heard. Minami followed right behind her.

The salmon-haired girl let out a squeak of surprise as she walked through the opening into the central room. Her speed by twofold as she moved towards the object of her attention, and Minami did the same.

"Hey, Onee-chan! Hello!"

Yutaka greeted her surrogate sister cheerfully. Konata jumped and her head snapped towards the direction of the voice.

"Yu-chan?! Hey, what's up? Didn't think I would see you here! Oh, and _kuudere-chan_! We were just talking about you!"

" _Kuu_.. _dere_?"

Minami's reaction was exactly the same as Miyuki's; their heads even tilted in the same direction. It was an odd detail to notice, but for some reason it was one that Kagami picked up almost immediately.

"Oh, Minami-chan, Yutaka-san! Welcome!" Miyuki stood up from her seat gracefully, executing a small bow towards the two newcomers.  
"I apologize, we've just finished the snacks.. Here, I'll go get some more."

Minami looked like she had a reply ready, but she looked towards her protégé first. Yutaka noticed this but didn't react directly, instead nodding gratefully at the pink-haired girl.

"That would be great! Do you want some help?"

"Oh, go ahead and have a seat. I'll be back in a moment, no worries."

Miyuki smiled at the two of them as they sat down on one of the sofas in the Takara's living room, and she picked up the tray and headed towards the kitchen to search for more sweets. It wasn't finding something to serve that was the problem as much as picking something out.

Yutaka and Minami blended into the conversation easily as it started up again. Minami moved her eyes without turning her head, noting the position of occupants in the room. Going clockwise, it was Tsukasa and Miyuki, Yutaka then herself, and Konata and Kagami. She found her eyes focused on the miniature girl for longer than she had intended. Thankfully Konata was turned in the opposite direction, her face half buried in the girl sitting next to her.

 _"I have to wait.. Everybody will hear if I try to ask her now.."_

"Hey, we should give you a nickname Minami!"

Konata smiled at the mint-haired girl, her mind already racing to come up with a shortened version of her name. Almost everybody else agreed to the notion, including Miyuki who had returned with plenty of sugary looking snacks.

"Hmm.. Minami means south by definition.. It's a unisex name that is feminine in some areas, masculine in others."

"Um.. that's true, but-"

"I think it's a good idea, Kona-chan! That way, Minami will be closer to us because we all have nicknames for each other! It's like we're accepting her into our group!"

Tsukasa gave Minami a wide smile, clearly charmed by the idea of a nickname. Minami shot a plaintive look in Miyuki's direction, but the _meganneko_ was lost in thought for the time being. That alone should've alerted Minami that her fate was sealed, because there were only two people in the room who would understand her silent pleas for help, and both of them seemed to have sided against her.

"No, I don't really _need_ a nickname, but tha-"

"You know, Konata, you actually do have decent ideas sometimes. What about Nami-chan?"

"Eh. It's alright."

"What do you mean alright?!"

"Ah, I got it! How about we call her Tachi-sama?"

"What? No! Are you even thinking about their feelings?!"

Konata and Kagami went back and forth about the issue, leaving the girl with mint hair in the dust of their metaphorical battle. Her sigh of distress was barely audible and virtually invisible. Matters had been taken out of her hands as easily as dandelion seeds scatter to the wind.

"Minami, how about Mina-san?"

"Uh.. er.. I really don't think so.."

As if just realizing Minami's dislike for the idea, most of the other occupants in the room appeared to deflate. Most noticably was Yutaka, who let out a tiny, adorable sigh.

"Oh.. T-that's okay Minami. I mean, if you don't want a nickname, we won't try to force it onto you.."

"..."

Everyone in the room just looked crestfallen. For whatever reason, Minami's having a nickname seemed to be an incredibly important and endearing idea to them. Although she didn't show it a pang of guilt struck at her heart, seeing her friends so down because of her.

".. Well, I'm not exactly against it.."

"Really?!" Yutaka perked up instantaneously at the confession.  
"Then.. Mi.. Mina-chan..?"

She tried out the nickname with hesitation, but a light of joy mingled with the innocence in her lime green irises. _Mina-chan_ looked at her younger friend for a moment. Her mouth opened to speak but Yutaka got to it first.

"Mina-chan, you should use our nicknames too!"

"Hm..? Uh.. sure.. If it makes you happy, Yu.. chan.."

Changing the way you addressed someone was difficult indeed. Minami shrank a little at first, but the name started to endear itself to her. After mere seconds, she found herself feeling the slightest bit closer to her salmon-haired friend.

"Yu-chan.. Yu-chan.. .. Thank you."

Yutaka giggled softly. The distracted look on Minami's face was so unusual. Not in a weird way, but it was an expression that she had never seen before.

"They're off in their own world, aren't they Konata?"

"Yeah, just like us! Hey, Miyuki, why is Minami here anyways? Were you going to go on a date with her or something..?"

"Oh no, we're just close friends, and I don't think she's interested in females.. She comes to visit us every now and then. I'm like her big sister, from what her parents tell me. She even called me her sister once, but it was an accident and she was rather embarrassed after that!"

/-/

Takara Household [1:28 PM]

Nodding her farewells, Minami turned away as the door closed gently and the click of the lock told her it was time to leave.

"That was nice.. I didn't think I would see sis or her friends there!"

"Me neither.."

Yutaka started down the path leading away from the Takaras' front door, turning back and looking at her companion with a beckoning gaze. Minami blinked and stared back, and then she fell into step besides her friend.

"Oh, what were you visiting for anyways?"

"No reason. It's become a sort of routine, for me to visit her house every week."

"So it's just a casual thing, then?"

"Yeah."

The mint-haired girl looked at her friend, noting her facial features. The slow nod of understanding, and the **o** shape of her mouth was of.. surprise and relief, Minami decided.

"You looked like you wanted something from Onee-chan. Did she borrow something from you? Do you need to ask her something?"

".. How did you come to that conclusion?"

"I just saw you watching her.. You looked like you wanted to say something, but you looked away after a little bit. Actually, I think you're always like that.. Sorry.."

"No need to apologize.. Anyways, it isn't important right now."

Minami hated lying; especially if it was to Yutaka, unless it was for a completely selfless reason- one that only benefitted the girl herself. That being said, Minami's definition of lying did not encompass the exclusion of select information nor the replacement of fact with opinion.

She did need to confer with the blue-haired eccentric about something important, but it wasn't outstandingly urgent, so it could wait. It just so happened to be convenient that Konata was at Miyuki's house during the time she visited.. and equally inconvenient that she had brought her friends.

 _"Eventually.. Patience leads to opportunities.."_

Time's passage seemed to alter while they walked through the quiet streets of the town. Minami found that her mind was starting to drift, and with some effort she willed herself to focus. Shortly after, she realized there wasn't really anything striking to think about, so she allowed her mind to drift again, but with control so that she could still pay attention to their location.

"Um.. Mina-chan, are you.. I mean, do you have plans for today?"

"Huh? Oh. No, I wasn't going to do anything in particular."

Yutaka had a feeling of rising hope after hearing the answer to her first question. So far, so good!

"Okay.. Would you like to spend the day with me? Like, just.. hanging out?"

"Sure. That sounds like a good idea."

Her hope blossomed into courage as she was once again met with a positive result. Going forth with the plan in her mind, she looked upwards directly into her friend's eyes and smiled as wide and cutely as she could.

"A-Alright! Then.. it's a d-date!"

".. A date..?"

Minami's voice bespoke for her surprise and hesitation. The courage and hope that Yutaka had previously felt was spirited away by the distrait expression of her older friend.

"S-sorry! Onee-chan told me to say that so I did, I didn't mean anything by it! I.. uh.. we don't have to do anything if you don't want to, okay?"

".. No, that's okay.. I'm not doing anything important today, so I can spend the day with you."

So it was the fault of the big sister, Konata. Minami heaved a deep inwards sigh. Should be relieved or disappointed?

Currently, taking a large step in the direction of either commitment did not appear to be wise. For the time being, she would quell her mixed emotions and simply enjoy the day.

 _"I'm not interested in her romantically anyways, right..? No, no.. Definitely not. Sorry for thinking of you in such a disturbing way, Yutaka, but I'm sure it's just a rogue thought. These strange feelings will pass.."_

/-/

The City [2:12 PM]

"Are you hungry, Yutaka.. Yu-chan..?"

"Only a little bit.. But I can wait, so.."

The white lie was in good heart, but Minami couldn't help but feel a tad bit of annoyance. She had instantly seen through the paper-thin excuse and straight to Yutaka's intentions, which were in good heart but still put her down.

"Please don't lie to me, Yu-chan.. I can tell that you're hungry. Even if you try to tell me otherwise, you know that I'll know."

"Oh. Sorry.."

They walked in silence for a while. Yutaka's chin had dropped to her chest, and her steps were heavier than they had been a couple seconds ago. Minami looked away, then back at Yutaka, then away again.

".. I'm not mad."

"I know.. I'm sorry for trying to lie to you, Minami.. I mean, Mina-chan!"

"It's okay. I know you were only trying to be polite."

With that exchange, Minami looked back at Yutaka. She was met with an infectious smile.

"Doesn't it feel weird, when you start to call someone differently? I'm still trying to get used to calling you Mina-chan, and to you calling me Yu-chan.."

"Is that so? If it makes you uncomfortable or if it's too difficult, you don't have to force yourself."

"No! Uh.. I like it.. it's just sort of.. you know!"

"Yeah."

The smile on Yutaka's face refreshed, and Minami casually broke eye contact and looked ahead of her.

"Let's go get lunch. Where do you feel like eating?"

/-/

"New Year's Eve is approaching. Will you be celebrating with friends or family?"

"Hm? Why not both?"

The response fazed Minami for a moment. It was a simple answer to a simple question, but for some reason she hadn't expected that particular answer.

"What's wrong? Is it weird to be with your friends and your family on New Year's Eve?"

"No.. It's just.. I've never really been at many celebrations.."

Yutaka's eyes widened and her mouth formed a circle. She put her chopsticks down and leaned over the table to peer closely at Minami.

"You mean, you've never had a party for New Year's Eve?!"

"W-well, it's usually me and my mother.. sometimes we go to visit Miyuki-san and her mother.."

Surprised by the somewhat stern scrutiny by the smaller girl, Minami realized she had stuttered at the beginning of her sentence, a strange happening for her. She placed her chopsticks down in courtesy.

"That's nice and all, but I don't think that counts as a party.."

".. It doesn't?"

Her curiosity was temporarily displaced when she saw a dot on Yutaka's face. She looked at it and blinked twice before she unconsciously reached for a napkin and dabbed at the spot on her friend's lips.

"Mm?! Wha.. huh?"

"Oh.. sorry. You had some sauce on your mouth."

"O-oh.. Th-thanks.."

The salmon-haired girl sat back in her seat, her shoulders raised and her chin tilted down. It was the only thing she could do to hide the streak of color on her cheeks, short of turning completely away from her companion.

"So.. what were you going to say, about New Year's Eve and a party?"

"Huh? Um.. You've never been to a party with anyone besides your parents and Miyuki-san?"

Minami nodded in agreement. An uncharacteristic dedication sparked in Yutaka's eyes as she also nodded, in affirmation.

"Alright! I heard from my sister that she was going to have a New Year's party at her friend's house! Do you want to come? I can ask her if you can go, but she'll probably say yes! All of her friends will be there, and I think we can invite Hiyori and Patricia-san too!"

"A party.."

The thought struck Minami as appealing. She was in her first year of high school, yet she had never been to a party with anyone more than the person who she considered her closest (and for a long time, only) friend and their two mothers. A natural interest compelled her to agree to the invitation.

"Yeah.. I'll go."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Oh my god I am so sorry I can't believe I let this happen again I'm a useless writer I apologize for everything please do not shoot me.**

 **So, I forgot to upload this chapter. It's been sitting in my folders, and I only realized this until after I uploaded chapter 16. I'm going to cut this short so you can go ahead and read that. I'm so sorry for this, I can't believe I forgot to upload ch 15! It won't happen again I hope!**

Sym: Who's keeping track?

Minami: That's the second time the author has forgotten to upload a chapter.

Yutaka: The second..? When was the first?

Konata: Oh, a while ago. You don't have to worry about it, Yu-chan.

Kagami: Yeah, the author is just busy. He does that sometimes, so we just have to be patient.

Miyuki: Is it me, or does the author's note this time around seem rather rushed?

Ayano: It is.. He must be in a hurry.

Misao: Whatever, why are we all here anyways? There's nothing to say! I don't even get my own serious session yet!

Sym: As Misao said, whatever! On to the next chapter! See you then!


	16. Chapter 16: End of the Year

_December 31_

Hiiragi Household: 4:45 PM

Kagami looked up from her light novel as she heard her name being called from somewhere else in the house. Konata, who was sprawled out on her back across Kagami's bed, kept her eyes on the manga she was holding above her head.

"Hold on, Konata. I think Mom wants my help with something."

"Oh, she probably wants help preparing the _osechi_. I should come too, since you have less cooking proficiency than what's required to make the dish." Now attentive, Konata tossed her book to the side and hopped off the bed with a spring in her step, grinning like a cat and already halfway to the door.

"What was that?!" Kagami narrowed her eyes, already knowing where the conversation was leading.

"Newbie, rookie, neo-"

"I get it, I get it! I've made simple dishes before, you know!" She interrupted Konata's listing of words to describe herself with an annoyed sigh.

"But _osechi_ isn't simple.. I'm dead serious, it's not easy to prep New Year's Eve dinner.." Konata turned away from her girlfriend as she spoke, knowing that a pair of ruthless violet-blue eyes would soon be directed at her.

 _"Make another joke about my skill and you will be dead."_ Kagami glared at her friend without saying anything.

".. at least, it's not easy for neophytes, so I'll come with you." The bluenette finished, putting a hand on the door.

"First of all, nobody uses that word in real life. Second of all, you're getting on my nerves."

" _Tsun_! _Tsun_!" Konata laughed mischievously, slipping out of the room without opening the door more than a crack. Left alone in the room, Kagami growled in annoyance as she flung open the door and followed after the bundle of energy.

After a couple seconds, she was met by the sight of her mother and her girlfriend in the kitchen with their aprons already on. The random observations center of her brain quickly wondered how Konata had already found and put on an apron in a couple of seconds, but like many before it the thought disappeared just as fast as it had popped into her mind.

"Hey Kagami, Konata and I are going to start putting dinner together. If you wash your hands first, you can come join us or go help your father with setting up." Miki smiled at her daughter endearingly.

Her random observations center was being put into action again as Kagami looked at Konata with a questioning gaze, wondering how she had been exempt from the offer to wash her hands. The otaku shrugged, still grinning.

"You did take a while to get here. Come on, join us, we'll teach you how to do it! Then you can point at some things on the table and say _I did that, that, and that_ and then everybody will clap and look at you with admiration in their eyes!"

Instead of admiration, Kagami's rolled her eyes in disinterest. Still, she wondered about how much she would enjoy praise over preparing a meal.

 _"I guess it would feel nice for people to say I actually made something that tastes really good.."_

Kagami joined them, rolling up her sleeves and dipping her hands in the sink. Her mother had already created the majority of the food, but there were still things to do. For the next hour or so, they spent the time making the last few components, then putting everything together into trays.

"Where's Tsukasa? I would've thought that she would be pretty much in charge of the kitchen right now. She's a great chef, after all!"

"Oh, Tsukasa went up to her room. She said she was feeling tired, and she was working pretty much since she woke up. I don't blame her, I'll have to take a nap before the party or I'll be the most boring person here.." Miki sighed, obviously telling the truth about her energy levels. Konata just grinned and nodded, telling her to take a break if she needed, but Miki shook her head and smiled perseveringly.

She wouldn't have said it out loud, but Miki subconsciously noted that most of the time was spent teaching Kagami about the various dishes and elements that went into cooking a festive meal.

"Wow, Kagamin, you're excited about this kind of stuff! You know, nobody expects you to learn everything at once. Just take it as it comes, no need to try to binge on knowledge." Konata, however, pointed it out as soon as she came to realize it. She grinned as Kagami startled herself, nearly dropping the plate she had just picked up.

"Hey, well.. there's nothing wrong with wanting to learn, right? I figured that it'd be a good idea to learn now, since it's the start of the new year.." She defended herself, looking away casually. Kagami wasn't sure whether or not to be embarrassed on the subject. Konata made everything into a tease, so it was hard to tell.

"Oh, was that one of your resolutions?" Miki smiled, and her smile only grew as Kagami looked at her in surprise.

"Wha.. I mean, yeah, it was. How did you know?"

"Let's call it a mother's intuition." Miki giggled softly to herself as her eyes returned to the countertop where she was working.

"Or, we could call it a lucky guess..?" Konata inquired, with a face that was halfway between confident and unsure. She looked up at the plum-haired woman with a grin seeking confirmation.

"Shush! I don't know how you came by that information, but it's not for you to go spreading around." Miki tutted, bending slightly at the hip and looking disapprovingly at her guest. The pose elicited a small chuckle from Konata, who remained unaffected by her feigned glare.

"My apologies, mistress."

Kagami observed the interaction between her girlfriend and her mother with interest. It hadn't taken long for the enamorable girl to meld in with her family. Since she had introduced herself formally, Konata had made phenomenol progress towards becoming part of her family's lifestyle. At this point, no suspicions would be raised if Konata were to show up unannounced and spend nearly the entire day at their house.

Knowing all this, Kagami Hiiragi couldn't help but smile. How could you not, when in the company of a girl who was simply an incarnation of enthusiasm? Konata could light up a candle of joy in the life of every person she visited.

"Kagami, your water is burning!"

"Huh?! Crap!"

She nearly panicked as she looked down for the burning water, her mind not having registered the complete absurdity of the statement.

"Wait, you can't burn water!"

"I wouldn't be surprised if you found a way to do that."

"Quit it with those jokes! Eventually, I'm going to be at least as good as you are right now!"

"Hmm.. I'm actually surprised that your goal isn't something impossible like matching my level of skill. At least you know how to make reasonable goals!"

"I'm not sure if I should feel insulted or flattered."

"Both?" Konata offered hopefully. Kagami rolled her eyes, but accepted the solution.

Work in the kitchen was wrapped up swiftly, and Kagami was dismissed (betrayed, she grumbled) to the living room. Looking up at the clock, it was a couple minutes from six. Soon, their guests would be arriving.

A loud clamor reached their ears as someone practically fell down the stairs, followed by another someone who was moving at a much steadier pace.

"Hey! Don't push me Inori!"

"Chill, Matsuri. You have a great sense of balance, I trust you."

"It's not an issue of whether you trust me or not! If I die, you're paying the fine!"

"If you die, your mother won't be happy." Their heads turned towards Miki as she smiled patiently at her two oldest daughters.

"Sorry, Mom."

"Sorry!"

They apologized in unison, but their mother just laughed it off, making a shooing gesture at them.

"Alright you two, get going. Enjoy your night, but a couple of things." She waited until their full attention was on her, which didn't take long.  
"Don't come home if you're drunk, but I want you girls back here before dinnertime tomorrow. And if I hear anything about authorities having problems, you two are in big trouble."

"Alright Mother! Thank you, see you tomorrow. Have fun, you guys!"

"Yeah, yeah, we know! We ain't gonna get arrested or anything, it'll be fine. Bye!"

And with that, they were out the door in a heartbeat. Kagami could still hear their muffled voices before they faded from audible distance.

"Wahoo! Let's go get _**wasted**_ Inori! This is gonna be the best night of our lives!"

"You bet! Oh man, college parties are the best.."

"Hey, be quiet! They can still hear us!"

"What?! You're the one who's yelling at the top of her lungs!"

"Whatever."

Kagami was a little confused by the whole thing. Her eyes went towards her mother for clarification, but Miki already opened her mouth to explain.

"Oh, those two are going to go to a party with their friends. I figured it would be more fun for them to go hang out with their group, since it would be a bit awkward to invite all of those college students here.. I don't think teenagers, college students, and adults get along very well, do they?"

"Mm.. depends on who the people are, but that's two birds with one stone. Those two are obnoxious when they're drinking.. Speaking of that, will they be okay?"

She was almost worried about her sisters. It wasn't that she didn't place any faith in them whatsoever, it was just that weren't reknowned for being able to hold their drink.

"Those two will be fine. We're talking about our responsible overseer, Inori, right? Plus, anything Matsuri would do drunk, she'd do worse sober." Konata joked. Kagami turned a deadpan stare at the girl, before sharing a knowing glance with Miki. The otaku switched her gaze between the two in confusion, immediately realizing there was something she didn't know.

"Long story short, I've had to limit them to drinking only one glass of alcohol per occasion." Miki explained, hoping that would cover it. It did, because Konata said nothing more, just nodded.

/-/

Hiiragi Household: 6:03 PM

The door seemed much more formidable during the hours of night on the last day of the year. At least, it did to her, but she wasn't exactly sure why this door of all things was enough to make her feel anxious.

Minami raised a hand to knock on the door, but she missed the door and ended up knocking on something else.

"Oww!"

"..?"

The girl who she had hit doubled over, clutching at her head in pain. After a split second of surprise, Minami reached a hand out to help the girl.

"Sorry. Are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine. I've always wanted to do that, you know?" Konata straightened up with a smile, looking as if nothing had happened.  
"Whatever, come on in. You're the first one here, Yu-chan is going to be a little bit later."

"Okay.. But why did you mention Yu-chan specifically?"

"Oh.. no reason. Come on, my legs are getting tired from standing."

Minami felt a hand grab hers, sharply yanking her inside before she could respond. The door promptly closed shut behind her, causing her to briefly wonder if that was Konata's doing.

 _"How did she close it if she's in front of me..?"_

"Oh, welcome! You're early, Minami." A voice called out to her from the living room, which she had been practically tossed into. The person who had dragged her into the house said something inaudible before spiriting away somewhere.

"Good evening Kagami-san. I don't know if early is accurate.. I just wanted to be on time."

"On time? Oh, that's right.." The girl's mouth formed a circle, and she nodded slightly.  
"Usually, nobody appears on time. Most casual parties, everybody just shows up late."

"Hmm..?" Minami blanked.  
"Is there a reason for that?"

"Uhh.. I don't know. Not really, it's just sort of a thing. Everybody shows up whenever they're ready. Typically it's within half an hour or so, but you get the point."

"Alright.." Minami reluctantly accepted the explanation, as strange as it was. Normally being on time was important, especially for dated events.. Maybe there was much more to it than she had thought. Stationing the train of thought for later, she had a seat on the comfortable sofa, waiting patiently for someone to start a conversation. It didn't take long before her prediction was proved to be true, as the girl with blue hair bounced into the central room with a plate of edibles, already talking about something or other.

Currently, the only people present were herself, Konata, and the rest of the Hiiragi family. That made a total of six people, if you included the two parents, who would pass by every now and then, obviously taking care of things around the house while there was still time.

Minami's conversation with Kagami about the legibility of shopping malls and online transactions was put on pause when the doorbell rang. Looking up at the clock while someone else went to open the door, she noticed a couple of minutes had passed since her arrival.

"Hello Miyuki-chan! Welcome, come on in!"

"Good evening Tsukasa-chan. Thank you for hosting the celebrations today."

The voice was easily identifiable with its polite tone and sophisticated wording. If that didn't make it more obvious, you couldn't mistake the pink hair, glasses, and the elegant robe for anyone besides a Takara.

"Ah, Minami-chan! How are you?" Miyuki bowed slightly in her direction.

"I'm doing well, Miyuki-chan, thank you." Minami stood up, returning the greeting and a short bow.

"So it would seem that I'm the second person to arrive?" The glasses girl queried. Minami hadn't even seen her friend make a subtle scan of the room, and she was a little surprised at the quick and accurate conclusion.

"Yes.. Kagami-san said the others should be here within an hour, but for now it's just us." The mint-haired girl nodded her confirmation as Miyuki took a seat across from her.

"Oh, Yuki-chan! Welcome..!" Konata reappeared in the room, having disappeared for some reason or another. She smiled widely at the newcomer.  
"See, Kagamin? Told you Miyuki-san would be one of the first people to arrive!"

"I never said I didn't agree with you, idiot. Anyways, you didn't think that Minami would arrive first either!" Sounding somewhat miffed at the smug tone in Konata's voice, Kagami clicked her tongue and retorted to the taunt.

"Pfft. I never said she wouldn't." The bluenette defended herself with a the same logic her friend had used.

"Oh, geez, not this again.." Kagami rolled her eyes in mock exasperation.

And so, that continued for a while. Originally, there should've been around twelve people present, but Kagami's friend Ayano was celebrating with family and the underclassmen Hiyori and Patricia were busy. So really, the only other people left to show up were Yutaka and Sojiro, the mothers of Miyuki and Minami, and Misao.

Within half an hour, the entire remainder of the guestlist had arrived (and in that order, too!), and the liveliness of the house skyrocketed. As always with social gatherings, people sought out and formed their own circles of friends, but they were constantly morphing and mingling.

The atmosphere was friendly enough, but Minami couldn't help but feel a twinge of nervousness at being surrounded by so many people. Sure there were only, what.. twelve people? It wasn't that she was discomfort or afraid per se, more like she just wished to escape the crowd. So she did that.

The party continued, and time passed unprohibited; it was hard to keep track of time, for it was so easy would get so caught up in the party mood and chat the night away.

Only the person standing next to the girl noticed as she slipped out of the room. That same person followed suit a couple moments later.

/-/

Hiiragi Household, Backyard: 7:08 PM

The stones were cold. Not uncomfortably so. It was actually rather pleasant. The laughter and sounds of life coming from the house were filtered out as background ambience, leaving the girl in the yard to take in the night air in relative peace.

Sitting on the stones by the pond, Minami gazed into the clear water with an even clearer mind. Being one used to a solitary lifestyle, she found it simple to both focus in on her thoughts or zero out her thoughts, whichever the situation required. At the moment, there was nothing on her mind. Just herself sitting on the edge of the water.

"Mina-chan?" Someone appeared behind her, and Minami sensed footsteps that went around her, stopping to her left.

"Oh.. Yu-chan." She stated, greeting the girl with a neutral tone. Yutaka smiled a little bit as she bent her knees, taking the same sitting position as Minami.

"Hey! What are you doing out here? Everybody else is inside." She queried innocently. Minami knew that Yutaka meant nothing by the question, but the phrasing made her feel like she was being.. interrogated, for lack of a better word.

"I'm sort of uncomfortable with large crowds." Minami answered, the tone in her voice challenging anyone who would expand on the confession. The salmon-haired girl had no intention of looking down on the thought however, and Minami quickly realized how silly it had been to suspect Yutaka of laughing at her.

"Really? I get that feeling too.. It's okay because only our friends are here, but I still get scared when there's so many people around.." Yutaka sighed almost dejectedly. For a second, Minami was afraid that her leaving was a cause for the girl's dispirit.

"I'm sorry if I left too suddenly.. I just had to get some air, and I forgot to tell you. My apologies.."

"That's alright. I don't mind, because you have your needs too! Plus, I can take care of myself.. I'm actually sort of worried I'll have trouble being on my own, since you're always helping me out with everything."

There was another cause for worry, something that Minami could do with less of. Was her constant assistance and caring for the frail girl causing long-term harm? The thought was terrifying.. Maybe she should back off a bit? Should she keep helping?

"Oh, it's not your fault. I'm glad you care so much about me, I just need to make sure that I don't get lazy so I can manage when you need to do something else!" Having noticed the distress on Minami's face, Yutaka smiled sheepishly and reassured her that she wasn't in the wrong.

"Oh.. Th-thank you.."

Minami looked away, breaking their eye contact. There it was again, the strange feelings she always got when she was near the tiny girl. Her pale cheeks started to grow warm, and she gazed across the water, watching the ripples travel across the surface of the pond.

"Well.. Mina-chan.. I wanted to tell you this for a while, but I get this.. feeling when you're with me.." Yutaka started hesitantly. Her hand crept over, landing on top of Minami's. The pink-haired girl's hand grasped at hers, and it felt so different from before. Yutaka's fingers were so small, her palm was so warm; in stark contrast, her own hand was smooth and cold like the night-time temperature. For a moment, Minami's heart flew into the sky and left her speechless. She said nothing, just hummed so Yutaka knew she was listening.  
"Whenever I'm near you, I feel really.. really safe, and warm.. And I know it's weird and selfish of me to ask this, but.. Will you stay with me, forever?"

Yutaka said all of this without looking directly at Minami. Her eyes went everywhere except Minami. Down at her lap, up at the sky, over the water, her eyes drifted in all these directions. A pang of disappointment struck at her heart, and guilt followed straight after. It wasn't the confession Minami had hoped for, sure, but it was close enough. She had no right to ask for something that was actually selfish.

"Of course. I won't leave your side."

"Not even after.. after we graduate?"

"Not even after we graduate."

And with those words, both now felt a world closer to the other. The words they had spoken were electrifying, sending a shiver down her spine. Minami didn't say anything more, nor did Yutaka; the two of them just sat on the edge of the pond, one hand over each other's, gazing up at the tranquil sky and into the calming water.

Just as she was contemplating excusing herself to go find her sweater, she felt Yutaka's hand move away from her own. She turned to look at her friend, thinking that the girl would be heading back inside. To her surprise, Yutaka shifted closer and leaned against her, putting her weight against Minami's side. The head of pink hair rested almost perfectly against her shoulder, and for a split second Minami was a little jealous of how comfortable Yutaka looked right now.

Minami couldn't react for a second, mostly out of sheer shock by the unexpected physical contact. Then, when she realized that Yutaka was tensed up as if hesitant about touching her, she decided to just do it.

She reached out, taking Yutaka's hand in her own. At the same time, she snaked her arm around the small girl's waist without touching her, hesitating for a moment before wrapping her arm around Yutaka and hugging the salmon-haired girl into her side.

Yutaka visibly relaxed, letting her shoulders fall and letting her body go lax in the embrace. Having Yutaka rest against her like this wasn't something new, but Minami felt her cheeks grow warmer for the second time that night. Yutaka looked up at Minami, her smile glowing in the light of the half moon in the heavens above. The shine reflected in her lime-green eyes said more than words would ever. Minami had an almost irresistible urge to lean in and kiss her right then and there, but for the sake of keeping this moment sacred just that much longer, she pushed back her desires and met Yutaka's eyes. They broke eye contact at the same time, looked over the pond. A slight but almost euphoric smile crept onto Minami's face, and she once again had to resist an urge to laugh out loud.

Speaking wasn't necessary. Thus, neither of them said anything. Without any idea nor care for the passage of time, they sat together on the edge of the pond, surrounded by darkness with only the moonlight to cast an atmospheric glow upon the world. Not once did Minami or Yutaka wish they were back inside the house, where the celebration continued without them.

Minami had barely noticed the movement in the corner of her eyes, but when she looked the flash of blue had already disappeared, leaving behind a tray of food, just enough for two.

/-/

Hiiragi Household: 7:45 PM

"So? How'd it go?"

"Without a hitch! I must have stepped on a twig or something, because Minami almost saw me."

Konata grinned triumphantly, having been the one to successfully deliver dinner to the pair of girls disconnected from the rest of the partygoers.

"I'm surprised at how thoughtful you are, Konata. I thought you were going to do something and ruin the moment for them.."

"I was tempted, but for the sake of my little sister, the only thing to do is encourage their love!"

"How are you even sure they're in love? For all we know, Minami doesn't even like her in a romantic way.."

"Wow, you really are clueless aren't you?" Konata feigned exasperation. Her shoulders dropped, her head hung, and she let out a deep sigh as she put a hand on her forehead.  
"Their love may even rival our own! That's saying a lot, because I would take on the world for my Kagamin!"

"I can't tell." Kagami blushed a little at the statement, knowing that the otaku was both joking and serious about what she had said.  
"At least they're consistent about it.. Unlike you, who I can't even tell if you're in love with me or not."

"Kagamin, don't say that! We both know that we're madly in love, even more so than anyone in the world!" She cried, latching onto Kagami and hugging her extremely tightly. More out of surprise and panic at the strength of the grip, the tsundere tried to pry the girl off of her.

"Hey, get off! I can't move with you clinging onto me like this!"

The bluenette complied, but instead of letting go she just shifted her weight so as to make it comfortable for both of them.

"Hey, Kagamin?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna kiss you when the clock hits midnight!"

It took a second for it to sink in, but when it did Kagami's face lit up like a firework. With a euphoric grin, Konata laughed off all the protests and half-hearted annoyance, seeing right through it and knowing that her girlfriend was smiling.

"Look forwards to that, okay?" She smiled, sincerely this time. Konata's eyes met Kagami's, and light pink tinted both of their cheeks from the simple warmth radiating from them.

"Tch.. I am.." Her hand moved on its own, her fingers gently touching Konata's face.

"Alright, lovebirds, come eat dinner! I'm gonna be sick if I had to put up with any more of your lovey-dovey stuff.. Bleck."

Their moment was interrupted by Misao, who was glaring at them from across the room. Her face of annoyance was short-lived, as she gave up the act and chuckled to herself.

"Whatever, you get the point. Come eat dinner, you two can kiss and hug later. And get a room, not all of us are interested in watching. Especially me. I don't like watching you two touch each other."

They looked at each other, then at Misao, then back at each other. Stifling their laughter, they stood up from the couch and made their way towards the dinner table to join the feast.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **An update?! 'Tis an incredibly rare occurence! But alas, I left all my Pokeballs at home, and I cannot catch this rare creature.**

 **Anyways, I apologize for the (once again) delayed update. How long has it been? I'm not going to check because I'll feel bad for being so lazy. I wanted to finish writing my other story Lost Found Returned so I did that. It's all finished now, I think I wrapped it up well although it had a lot of flaws mid-story. All focus is now on this story, I have some ideas for others but those will have to wait. You guys are getting all my attention now! Praise me.**

 **This is the climax for the Minami/Yutaka arc. They won't be the focus of the story for a while, or at least I'm not going to purposely make it so. Not saying they won't be relevant anymore, just that they won't take away from the main pairing Konami.**

 **I know my writing style has changed a lot, between the first chapter and the middle chapters and now this one. I would love feedback on anything you want me to change, or things you think my writing could improve upon.**

 **At a loss for words, I'm all tired now. Leave a review please, about what you liked and what you don't like, feedback about the story itself or my writing style is appreciated. I don't care if you flame me or if you compliment me, just leave a review. I reply to all my reviews except for guests, and if you give me a half-assed "too short" or "ooc" review, expect an even less-assed response. Yeah, I think I'm annoyed right now. Sorry.**

 **Let me summarize everything.. Review with feedback and comments, or ask a character something. PM about questions for me or in general, I answer most things including stalkers. Follow if you want notifications or reminders that this story isn't dead, favorite to make me feel a little better about myself. Also, I got a haircut. It looks stupid.**

Sym: Yeah, I don't really like haircuts myself. I usually let my hair grow out, and I only give it a trim when I can't see anything.

Konata: I've never cut my hair before. I don't plan on doing so either, so I just hope that it doesn't keep growing until I'm like that one girl.. Rapunzel, I think.

Yutaka: That would be cool! I think you look really good with super long hair, sis.

Konata: Thanks Yu-chan, but it's already hard enough to brush my hair as it is..

Sym: Any particular reason you don't want to cut it, Konata?

Konata: Well, it's my mother's hair. It's the same shade of blue, and it looks almost exactly like hers. People actually mistake me for my mother sometimes.

Yutaka: I saw a picture of your mom once.. You really do look like her, except you're a little bit different.

Sym: Konata looks sneakier and more mischievous than her mother, right?

Konata: Hey, it's just that I'm a little shorter! But yes, I guess you might be right about that..

Sym: Anyways, do we have any discussion topics today?

Konata: Hmm, lemme see.. No important topics. Just random questions, but there's a lot of scribbles and markings on the list, it's sort of hard to read.

Sym: Oh. The author is still working on those.. I wonder why that paper is here anyways. Just ignore it. Any how, I guess that's it for this chapter! Have a great New Year's you two! And I think it's too early for a happy Halloween to the rest of you, but here's to it! See you in the next chapter!

Yutaka: Halloween? But it's December..

Konata: They live in an alternate dimension, Yu-chan. They're about two months behind us.


	17. Chapter 17: After the End of the Year

_January 1_

 _Hiiragi Household - 9:40 AM_

Kagami came to with a warmth in her arms and cold wrapped around her shoulders. She grumbled to herself in annoyance at being woken up by something as trivial as the temperature.

The rational voice in her head told her to pull the covers up. It was such a simple idea, she wondered why she hadn't done it already.

Her hand reached down, feeling for the blanket. After locating it, she grabbed it and pulled it up to her neck, sighing contently as a relaxing heat shut out the chill of the early morning.

To her surprise, the warm feeling that she was holding close to her suddenly stirred, jostling against her and shoving the comforter off both of them.

"Hey, what the heck..?"

"Huh?"

Konata, for she was the one that was curled up in bed against Kagami, sat up sleepily. A yawn escaped from her lips as she leaned forward to keep herself from falling backwards. Her hair was rather neat for having just woken up, with only a couple stray strands sticking out if you disregarded the one that was always there.

"Mm.. .. cold.." She rocked herself from side to side, mumbling only one word as she did so.

"Well, blankets exist for a reason." Kagami grumbled. She was less surprised at finding Konata in her bed than she was annoyed by the blanket being out of her reach.

"The blanket is cold." Konata stated simply as if it made complete sense. Ironically, part of Kagami realized she was right. The blanket was cool to the touch, but the rest of her either disagreed or didn't care, just seeking something to shield herself from the morning air.

"No, it's not. Give it back."

"Whatever.." Konata looked at the floor off the edge of the bed, contemplating whether or not to try for it. She ultimately decided it wasn't worth the effort and let herself topple backwards, her hair fanning out to cover almost the entire bed.

She let out a satisfied hum as she turned onto her side, digging an arm underneath the purple-haired girl to wrap her into a tight hug.

"You don't need the blanket, you have me!"

"It's too early to be romantic, Konata.."

"This really isn't that romantic. Anyways, I'm probably right."

Kagami just sighed, but accepted the reasoning as.. well, reasonable. Her only correction was to pull the blanket up over the two of them before settling down comfortably.

"Fine, but we're still using the blanket."

"Aww.. Well, anything for my Kagamin!"

"Shush. Go back to sleep."

Konata giggled softly, but she went quiet to allow Kagami to close her eyes in peace.

She must have drifted off as well, because the next thing she remembered was waking up for the second time.

"Sis? Kona-chan?" The door swung open, with Tsukasa's head appearing in the frame.

"Oh, Tsukasa! Cover your eyes!" Without rising from underneath the covers, Konata cried out with a panicked voice. Equally, if not more, Tsukasa practically squeaked in alarm and vanished, shutting the door as she went.

"S-sorry! B-breakfast is ready.. Come eat after you're d-dressed!" Her voice reached through the closed door, and most likely travelled throughout the rest of the house.

"Wait, Tsukasa! We aren't doing anything, come back here! Let me explain!" Kagami panicked.  
"Damnit.. Konata, see what you've done? Now everybody thinks we were.. This is all your fault!"

"Oh, chill out, it's fine. I'll take care of everything!" Konata laughed at the comedic mixture of alarm and anger on Kagami's face.

Several minutes later, Kagami stepped out into the living room, dragging someone along behind her.

"Ignore what Tsukasa said, Konata was just screwing around. Another one of her not very funny jokes."

"Hey, they're plenty funny! You're the only person who doesn't laugh!" Konata protested adamantly, pouting indignantly as she tried to right herself from being practically pushed into the room.

"Alright you two, that's enough. Come eat breakfast with your family." Miki's stern voice sounded out, and the two of them immediately ceased their argument and sat down at the table.  
"Go ahead and joke about it, but when you're inside our house, please don't do anything that isn't.. family friendly, to put it one way."

Miki hid a giggle behind her hands as her daughter's face turned crimson, letting go of her girlfriend's hand (nobody had even noticed until she did so) and gesturing in front of her wildly.

"We aren't! I mean, we wouldn't do that! Right Konata? We'd never do that in the house." Kagami defended herself in a panic, turning to the bluenette that was hopefully on her side.

"Agreed! Nothing strange goes on when we're inside your house, Miki-san. Nothing at all. Just the normal hugs, and hand holding, and the occasional kiss on the cheek when your daughter is in a good mood!" She nodded enthusiastically, not hesitating to crack a joke about her _tsundere's_ personality.

"As long as it isn't in my house, I'm completely fine with you two doing such things."

Tadao said it with such a straight face, it took a couple seconds to sink in. The silence was broken by a bout of laughter starting with the only Hiiragi that didn't have purple hair.

"Oh _wow_ Dad, where did you learn to make jokes like that!" Matsuri cracked up, barely managing to say it before breaking down in a fit of laughter.

"It's so much funnier when Dad does it, right?" Inori agreed, chuckling rationally compared to her younger sister's uncontrolled giddiness.

Konata was blushing, but she grinned widely at what appeared to be the father's consent.

"So.. Does that mean I have the family's blessings now?" She inquired with wide eyes.

"Don't stretch it. You guys are still young, after all." Tadao warned her, only half-joking.

"You've always had our blessing, Konata. I'll bet you knew that already!" Miki added with a sincere smile.

Having said nothing for the most part, Kagami continued to eat her meal in red-faced silence. The activity died down and everybody else resumed their eating, although breakfast was just about over.

"Thanks for the food." Kagami was the first to finish, picking up her plate and rushing it off to the sink. As she made her way towards the hallway, Konata addressed her before she was out of range.

"Hey Kagamin! I'm gonna be moving out today!"

"Can you make sure I didn't leave anything lying around? I don't want to forget anything, important.."

"Important? Uh.. Actually, no questions asked. I'll look."

She had the slightest feeling of foreboding at what kind of answer she would get, so she left it at that and headed to her room.

Kagami decided to sit down at her desk, rather than following her instincts and dropping onto the bed to relax. Settling into her chair, she scanned her surroundings for anything that looked suspicious.

 _"What did she mean by important, I wonder.."_ Her gaze alighted on something on the ground near her dresser. She blinked a couple of times.

Kagami gasped in shocked realization as she realized what the object was, and she felt her face heating up.

"T.. That's what she meant by.. important, huh.."

Hesitantly pushing her seat back and standing up, she took a couple of slow steps towards the thing on the ground. After she was a little closer, she stopped and stared at it for a couple of moments.

 _".. Wait, that's mine."_

Kagami stared at it for a couple more moments before laughing to herself, almost deliriously. Her tension dissolved and she walked over to the dresser, picking up the undergarment while looking at herself in jest.

"Jumping to conclusions, that's me for you."

She placed it back in its rightful place before returning to her desk, her eyes sifting through the various things on the table.

"Mm.. I still have a little bit of homework to do. I'll bet Konata hasn't even started hers yet." She chuckled to herself, knowing that she was probably right. She had a great deal of confidence when it came to guessing the _otaku's_ academic status.

"Maybe I should check.. Just in case she forgot.."

Kagami was about to find her friend's bag to look through it for her homework, but she realized Konata wouldn't have brought it anyways. It was most likely collecting dust in her house somewhere.

She sighed, knowing she had excess time on her hands. There were things she had to do, but there wasn't really sufficient time to get anything done properly, nor did she have the motivation to actually sit down and do something.

"I'll call Miyuki.. I don't have anything else to do, and she's a good person to talk to regardless."

Her phone was conveniently placed on her desk, so she picked it up and flipped it open, hitting the quick dial and scrolling through her list of contacts.

Finding Miyuki Takara in the list, she clicked a button and held the phone up to her ear, and at the same time she leaned back in her chair, straightening her back and relaxing her shoulders.

"Hello?" Someone picked up, greeting her politely with a slightly inquisitive tone.

"Hey Miyuki! It's Kagami."

"Oh, hello Kagami-san!" The voice brightened audibly, almost excitedly as it became clear they were in friendly territory.  
"How are you? Did you call for any specific purpose?"

"I'm doing fine, thanks. And no, not really. It's the first day of the year, how are you feeling?"

"Oh, we're doing alright over here. By the way, did you dream of anything last night?"

"Oh yeah, my _hatsuyume_.. I actually don't think I had one this year. Nothing comes to mind when I try to remember.." Kagami chuckled.  
"Maybe I used up all of my luck already!"

"Oh, that's a shame.. Actually, I'm actually quite pleased about my own!"

"Really now? Did you get anything auspicious?"

"Quite, I actually saw the silhouette of a bird. It was flying rather high up, so I couldn't make it out at first, but it swooped down and landed on the roof of a conveniently-placed miniature shrine. It looked directly at me before it took off, and that's all I can recall."

"Wow.. That's amazing, Miyuki! I think this year is gonna be pretty fortunate for you, am I right?"

"I can't say I'm not hoping you're right." Although they were only connected over the phone, Kagami could virtually see the smile on Miyuki's lips and in her eyes.

"Actually, there was something I wanted to ask you. What was the homework for your class? I don't really want to ask Tsukasa since she's still down in the family room, and I think we can both agree that Konata is out of the question."

"The homework.. I believe there were a couple of worksheet handouts, but otherwise we have the same pages as your class if I'm not mistaken. Ayano-san came by earlier to ask the same question, so she should know if you need more clarification. Otherwise, I can go check my agenda right now.."

"No, it's fine. Thanks for telling me. Konata is going to be going back to her house today, but I think I'll have to keep her here for a study session. Knowing her, that girl will waste all of today playing video games and catching up on anime, saying something about _Izumi tradition_ or whatnot, right? Haha!"

"Hmm? Actually, I believe Konata-san called me saying she would be coming over to my house today.. Did she not tell you?" Miyuki wondered, a little confused at the contrasting stories.

"Huh? She's going over to your place today? She didn't tell me anything about that.." Kagami trailed off, muttering to herself as she went through the possible conclusions.  
 _"She never copies off of Miyuki.. It's unlike her to go visit their house on her own time, too.. And I seriously doubt they're involved in some sort of illegal or suspicious activities, otherwise Miyuki wouldn't have told me about it.."_

"Um.."

"Ah. Sorry about that. When is she going over?"

"Around 10:45 AM, if I recall correctly."

"I'm going to ask her about it. See you later Miyuki! Have a good day!"

"You too, Kagami-san! Please enjoy the rest of your week."

Hanging up the phone, the purple-haired girl placed it down on the table and slid it back to its place just as the door to her room swung open, letting someone in.

"Kagamin! I missed you, you left me all alone with your cool and super nice family!" Konata whined as she walked over, standing behind the chair and cradling her friend's head in her arms.

"Then why are you complaining?" She inquired sarcastically, suspecting some teasing but not making any action to divert it.

"Because none of them are as wonderful as you are, Ka-ga-min!" The bluenette swayed from side-to-side, rocking the _tsundere_ back and forth in the chair.

"I'm glad you think so, oh strange one." Kagami accepted the compliment and closed off any room for further dialogue. She ducked her way out of the hold before she reached up and managed to hook her arms around the girl's neck, bringing her down to head level.

"Hey, you can't do that!" The older girl complained, trying to slip away, and rather unsuccessfully for the time being.

"Says who? Besides you, nobody else is complaining." Kagami smirked, but released her grip nonetheless.  
"Oh yeah, what are you going to be doing today?"

"Oh, you know. Going home, playing games, keeping my phone on my lap so I can respond to all your heartfelt messages as soon as they appear." Konata shrugged as if it was normal, which it was for her.

"I thought you were going to Miyuki's house, right? Did you change your mind?" Kagami asked casually, wording her sentence to be purposely misleading.

"Huh? Miyuki's house.. When did I tell you about that?" She sounded genuinely confused, a rare occurence for her. There was no worry or nervousness in her voice though, so Kagami confirmed that there was nothing shifty happening between her girlfriend and her other friend.

"You didn't, but she did. I just got off the phone with her."

"Mm, and here I thought you were talking to yourself."

"Anyways." Kagami prompted.

"Anyways. I was just gonna spend some time at her house, since we don't really do that often and I sort of owe her it anyways. Nothing dangerous, I'm not even going to be sleeping there. Think of it like an odd job you would pull off of the daily request board." Konata shrugged again.

"Seems fair. Do you mind if I come over? I don't really have anything to do today, so I was thinking if it would be alright for Tsukasa and I to join you on your little excursion."

"Uhh.. I guess you could. Nothing really interesting, though, and Miyuki might be busy or something. You sure?" Konata spoke slowly and disinterestedly, an evasive tone creeping into her voice.

"Yeah, it'll be fine. We'll leave when you do."

/- Line Break -/

 _Generic shopping street - 10:30 AM_

Kagami leaned against a glass wall, waiting patiently while her girlfriend and sister traversed the wide aisles of the store, chatting away about the various things related to cooking and kitchenry.

"Bleh.. Ingredients, that's all it is. Spice this, sauce that.."

She muttered to herself angrily, bordering deliriously. Kagami casted resentful looks towards the see-through windows of the modern market, making a couple annoyed remarks at the two girls happily browsing the shelves and taking their time. Just taking their sweet, sweet time, as sweet as the caramel-coated coffee candy that was melting in her mouth, before it turned into a somewhat-sweet, mostly-bitter lump of crystallized caffeine. She sighed and shifted her position, ignoring the jaundiced thoughts that had no right to exist.

"Good morning Kagami-san. Fancy meeting you here on the first day of the year." A polite greeting came from behind her, and Kagami turned her head in surprise.

"Miyuki! Hey, I didn't expect to see you here." She responded the greeting joyously, cheering internally as she realized she would _finally_ have someone to talk to.  
"What brought you here?"

"I was just shopping for groceries. As you know, Konata-san is going to be visiting my house today, so I was just making sure that our stocks of ingredients were not low." Miyuki held up the shopping bag and shaking it so that the rustle of various whatevers for making food could be heard.

"Eh? What, your plan all along was to get her to cook for you?" Kagami grinned, snickering at her friend's reaction to the tease.  
"Sorry, but she's my personal cook. I'm afraid I'll have to forbid you from hiring her."

"N-no, I had no intentions of that when we planned this day! It was actually Konata-san who suggested and pushed the idea of cooking for my mother and I.." The pinkette explained, though she wondered briefly at why she was so flustered over the idea. It took her a moment to calm down, but she recovered quicker than most and smiled good-naturedly and made a short, self-deprecating bow.

"Speaking of which, for what reason are you waiting outside the market?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Konata and Tsukasa are buying stuff right now. Konata said she was going to.. wait.." Kagami trailed off as the pieces clicked together in her head.  
 _"Isn't Konata already buying things for cooking? If she is, then why is Miyuki out here with.."_

At the moment the other two stepped out of the store, saving Kagami from having to explain the situation herself. They giggled in synchronization at some unknown joke before they realized that someone else had joined their group.

"Oh, Yuki-chan! Why are you here?"

"Miyuki-chan? Oh, good morning! I really didn't expect to see you so soon, hehe!"

Miyuki just smiled, nodding towards both of them.

"Good morning Konata-san, Tsukasa-san. I was just purchasing some items to resupply our pantry. We were running low on supplies, so I was making sure we wouldn't run out of anything." She explained, once again, what she was doing outside on a rather chilly yet welcoming morning.

Nobody spoke for a couple of seconds. Konata stared unblinking at Miyuki with her regular neutral expression, then looked towards Tsukasa, whose eyes couldn't decide whether or not to stay on Konata or Miyuki. Kagami waited as the gears started turning.

"Ah. We actually just bought like, all the cooking stuff already.." Konata was the first to speak, and she did so sheepishly.  
"So.. yeah.. haha. Do you think I can get a refund?"

Kagami sighed, putting a palm on her forehead.

"Konata, I-" She opened her mouth to respond, but barely got out a couple of words before she realized someone else had beaten her to the mike.

"It should be okay, right? After all, it's good to have a surplus of cooking ingredients!" Tsukasa said, looking around for nods of confirmation from her friends.

"You do have a point." Kagami accepted the reasoning, but she still couldn't see the conversation in any light except for a

/- Line Break -/

 _Takara Household - 11:55 AM_

"Wait, you were seriously coming over here to cook? That's it?"

Konata looked over her shoulder at the disbelieved face of her lover. She stared at Kagami for a couple moments before she turned back around, grinning.

"I _told_ you it would be boring."

"I should've believed you."

Kagami saw the bluenette shrug and return to slicing the vegetables at a slow and steady pace.

"Will Konata-san's hand be alright? Her cut can't have healed by now, right?" Miyuki inquired, her concern obvious through her voice.

"It should be okay.. I don't know why she insists on doing it herself, but she won't let me help her." Tsukasa looked between the girl in the kitchen and the girl sitting in front of her. She crossed her arms with a slightly miffed _hmph_.

"I'm sure it's nothing personal.. After all, Konata-san is a rather independent person, isn't she?" Miyuki hid her amusement at seeing Tsukasa's childish pout.  
"She would probably be grateful for your help, but she's doing it herself as if she needed to prove that she's still capable of doing things on her own."

"I guess you're right.." Tsukasa relaxed a bit, but her gaze still held a spark of longing to assist with the food preparation.

Meanwhile, Kagami was standing where the floor met tile, leaning against the wall as she watched Konata busily manage the kitchen's utilities.

"You're a lot different than Tsukasa when it comes to cooking." She noted, grabbing Konata's attention with her statement.

"Mm? What do you mean?"

"Well, Tsukasa is very methodical. Like, she does one thing at a time and makes sure it's perfect before going onto the next thing." Kagami started, thinking about how Tsukasa would make sure everything was perfect before moving onto the next step.  
"It's like she's following a recipe step-by-step."

"I've cooked with her a couple of times, and I think we can have good synergy as long as we communicate!" Konata smiled proudly- her duos with Tsukasa usually turned out well.

"But when you cook, it's more like you're multi-tasking and less like you're following the recipe.. Almost like you've memorized the recipe and tweaked it."

"Isn't that what everybody does? Find their own ways of getting something done?"

"Yeah, and that's exactly what it seems like you do when you cook."

"It's surprising that you noticed all of that, actually.." Konata commented, not looking up from whatever she was doing. Instead of reacting with indignance or getting flustered, Kagami just snorted and tried to take it in stride.

"Well, it's easier because I'm not actually doing anything. Plus, what kind of person would I be to not care about the way my sister or my girlfriend do things?"

"A boy." Konata stated without looking up.

"Exactly." Kagami said, before she bursted into laughter. Konata looked at her in confusion but smiled at the sight.

"You don't laugh much, but when you do laugh it's over something like this..?"

"Hey, I thought it was funny!"

"It was a little funny."

"It was pretty funny."

"Not all boys are bad, you know."

"Do you know any?"

"Sebastian?"

"That's not even his real name!"

"It's better than his real name though, don't you think so?"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Been trying to get this chapter out for a while, and I know it's been two or three weeks! I was stuck for a while, then I had some inspiration, then I had to give it up for the night; all that inspiration was gone the next day I sat down to write. T-T**

 **So yeah, I've been on and off about this chapter, not sure about the quality or the cohesion of some of the sections but here it is! I don't know what else to say, I had something planned out to put here but I don't know anymore.**

 **I have lots of ideas that I haven't started on. Some of them will probably be better as standalone stories, some of them may have to go in the extras collection, some of them might be able to fit into this. I'm sort of juggling a lot of ideas right now, so if you want to ask about them or suggest anything then feel free to PM me, and we can talk it out or I'll answer questions and stuff! Even if I haven't posted in like, months, I still get e-mail notifications about messages and reviews, and I always love to talk to my readers, even the people who hate me and my work (I haven't met anyone people like that yet, but I guess I'll still talk to them).**

 **Leave a review if you have something to say about the story itself, and you can private message me if you want to ask personal questions or just talk about things. I always appreciate you guys leaving me with advice and suggestions, and I'll always make sure to respond, unless I forget or you're a guest reviewer. I hate guest reviewers. Anyways, that's all!**

Sym: Yeah, I can agree about the guest reviewers. Most of them just leave annoying comments or questions and practically nothing useful. So far, we've gotten only one reasonable review from a guest. The others just wanted lemons and updates..

Kagami: Really? What lousy people.. At least leave some advice or feedback or something.

Konata: What kind of lemons? Like, yuri lemons?

Sym: They didn't specify.

Kagami: Does this have to do with the other time when you just gave me that lemon for no reason?

Sym: Maybe. I'm not even sure. I mean, if people aren't specific they won't necessarily get what they asked for. And for lack of a better transition topic, I'm gonna end the conversation about lemons here.

Konata: Well, that's not very fun. We could've talked about the better kind of lemon, the one that everybody likes!

Kagami: And onto the next topic, if you would Sym.

Sym: Oh, of course. Recently, a new Aeria Games MMO has come out. It's called Dragomon Hunter. Have you tried it, Konata?

Konata: Oh, that game? Yeah, I have! It's actually really fun!

Kagami: And is that what's been keeping you from doing your homework?

Konata: Ahaha.. well, you see, there's like, tons of things to do.. You know, there's like five boards of hunting missions, events, and on top of that there's the main quest and fishing, and then your guild needs you to come along to do dungeons and world bosses..

Kagami: No excuses. I'm not going to let you copy off of me, you're going to have to make up for the time you spend gaming!

Sym: Let's allow them to talk it out, and for now we're short on time so that's it for today! See you in the next chapter's end!


	18. Chapter 18: Life's Transitioning Phase

_January 2_

 _Izumi Household, 9:20 AM_

"And so, the sound of the rain phased into my consciousness. It was then that I remembered the time and place, and I stole a glance at the window."

Konata narrated her own actions as she leaned backwards in her seat, putting her arms over her head and arcing her back. It felt good to stretch after a long gaming session, and it felt even better with the cold air wreathed around her body. She took a deep breath and a chill enter her lungs.

"Haaah.. That feels great!" Konata sighed pleasantly, allowing her body to relax. She shut her eyes, blocking out the early morning light and her view of the ceiling.

Her quiet enjoyment of her room's environment was cut short as she, light-weight as she was, felt her chair tipping backwards past the point where it should've stopped. Her cat-like reflexes weren't enough to save herself, but it was all she could do to dive sideways as her chair fell to the carpet with a muffled _thud_.

"Tsch.." Konata muttered as she picked herself up off the ground.  
"I wonder if I could fix that somehow.. Maybe I should get a new desk chair or something. That or I'll have to stop stretching.."

Konata sighed, in annoyance this time, glaring at her chair because it was clearly at fault.

Moving to the chair, she bent down to lift it back up into its untoppled position. When she straightened up and pushed it back into place, someone cleared their throat from behind her.

"Ahem.. Uhh, Konata. You all right in here?" Sojiro asked nervously, his eyes scanning the room in search of anything out of place. Although she knew he meant well, it was clear where he had been looking.

"The only thing that isn't alright is the way you see your own daughter!" She scolded him with an expression that could be described as half-frown, half-smirk, and half-grin.

"A-ah, well, you see, it's not something I can really control.. I mean, it's not like I do it on purpose, my eyes have a mind of their own, you know? You understand, right?" He pleaded.

"Haha, oh course dad. No hard feelings. I hope.." Konata chuckled before she sat down at her desk once again.  
".. Gah, I'm still in the dungeon, too.."

Konata muttered something inaudible to herself as she moved her hands in a flurry across the keyboard, hitting keys in such quick succession that it appeared to be random. Sojiro watched his daughter with a smile plucking at the corner of his lips, then with amazement as he noticed she was already engaged in some sort of battle and was using the mouse to move the camera while still typing and mashing buttons.

"Oh, what happened anyways? I mean, it sounded like you fell over or something."

"Well, I sort of did. My chair tipped backwards. No problem at all, but I think I'm gonna buy a new one soon." She replied without looking away from the screen.

"Your chair tipped over? Were you leaning back or something? You know those things aren't very stable." Sojiro stepped past the door into the room, studying the somewhat flimsy red chair. The back of the seat barely reached the girl's bare shoulders.

"Ah, I guess I forgot about that. Whenever I do lots of intense activities in-game, I get distracted."

"Mm. Mind if I come in?"

"Go ahead."

Leaving the door open, Sojiro walked over to the television and pressed a button on the monitor- and the game console underneath.

"Can I play that new game? I haven't had any chance to play recently, and it's been on my mind for so long!"

"Go ahead."

As he tapped past the title screen and started up the singleplayer campaign, Sojiro's mind went in one direction while his eyes went in another. Although he seemed to be focused purely on the game- his eyes flickered back and forth, watching the screen, and his fingers were moving non-stop, pressing buttons- he was actually allocating more attention to his own thoughts.

 _"Huh.. Did Konata say she was distracted? Does she normally have trouble focusing?"_ His consciousness asked him. He pursed his lips in thought.  
 _"No, not really. She even praises herself on her multi-tasking skills."_

For the sake of conversation, he snuck a glance at the back of Konata's head, peering around her to look at the game she was playing.

"How's your dungeon coming along?" Sojiro asked idly, trying to sound casual.

"We're doing alright. Kragg's health is below fifty, so he's going to start using his Heroic attack pattern." Konata nodded slightly.

"Is your teacher playing with you?" He was legitimately curious about this, for he had actually never seen the two playing together.

"She just logged in." She answered indirectly.  
"This is the equivalent of having my game session commit suicide, but I'll tell her you said hello."

They sat in silence for a little while longer as Konata typed up a message, then waited for a reply.

"She said that you should be taking more care of me and making sure I don't play video games until nine in the morning." Konata read with a humorous tone.  
"Now she's telling me to be responsible and that I should log out on my own. Damn.." She turned around and smirked, seeing the sheepish grin on her father's face.

"Hah. As if I had any right to tell you when to log out." He chuckled and Konata shared a quick laugh also.

Although he was joking, he absently glanced over at the clock before returning his attention to the game. It took him a second, but he took a double take when the time actually registered.

"Wait, did you get any sleep at all?" His eyes strayed from the television screen to land on his daughter.

"No, not yet." Seemingly unperturbed by the fact, Konata hummed questioningly as she twisted in her seat to take a look.  
"Oh, it really is nine. Better log out."

She hurriedly typed out a message, looking down at her keyboard as she said her goodbyes to her online friends. After a couple of moments, the window closed out and she powered off the monitor, then the computer.

"There's so much to do in that game, there's just daily quests on top of daily quests." Konata spun her chair around and stretched her arms again. She slid out of her chair and sat down on the carpet next to her dad, reaching for a controller.  
"Is this multiplayer? I'll join in."

Sojiro grunted and let her pick up the controller, though he felt a tad bit of annoyance at the display of nonchalance.

They cooperated without words, not even tactical commands. Both of them were skilled gamers, with heightened reaction speeds that allowed them to progress through the levels with impressive accuracy and performance. Of course, the shooter game's campaign mode wasn't anywhere near difficult, but hey- skill is skill.

After what seemed like only a couple of minutes for a couple of levels, Sojiro looked over at his daughter with mild curiosity.

 _"How's she holding up? She doesn't normally stay up all night, does she?"_

He made a cursory observation of his daughter. Konata didn't seem any different than from how she usually was. Her emerald eyes blinked lazily, half-closed as usual. She was slouching a bit, but her posture was normally somewhere between healthy and perfect. She wore complacency on her face and her lips, which would tilt upwards into a smile or downwards into a frown depending on the situation. Right now, she didn't seem to be excited or dismayed. The same flat, neutral expression didn't change.

"You tired?" He asked lamely. It had occurred to him to be a bit more tactical in his word choice, but he decided not to elongate the conversation and just get to the point.

"Mm? No." Konata answered him with a sideways glance that spoke of confusion and light interest.  
"What makes you ask that? I don't think I'm doing badly.. Maybe my expectations for my own skill in shooters is lowering, with all the time I spend playing games that have automatic targeting.."

"Well, no.. It's not that, just.. How do I put this without sounding like a complete hypocrite.." Sojiro pursed his lips and hummed in thought.  
"You haven't slept yet, right? I'm sort of worried about you, that's a father's job you know."

"You sound like a half hypocrite right now." Konata laughed at her own joke, and her dad couldn't repress a faint smile.  
"But yeah, I haven't slept and I'm feeling fine. I've built up a tolerance for lack of sleep. Think of it like training your skills in that one PC game. Just do it over and over, and suddenly it becomes a whole lot easier." She shrugged and continued to lead her virtual persona through the level.

"As much as I would love to argue with whoever came up with the Ten Pledges of this world, reality isn't all similar to video games. You don't have infinite health or stamina or sanity, or anything for that matter. You have to take care of yourself, alright Konata?" Sojiro finished, exhaling in what could be mistaken as a sigh.

"Well, if you can beat the goddess in a chess game, maybe you can debate about changing some of those rules." Konata grinned.  
"I'm taking care of myself dad. No worries. Not tired at all, and if I ever do get tired then I'll collapse onto the bed and wake up fully restored!"

"That's what I worry about, girl. You're one of those people who almost never actually feels fatigued until they collapse. It's like hypermobility in your joints. It doesn't hurt until someone breaks your arm."

"Hypermobility? Is that a real word?"

"Oh, sorry. Slipped into formal writing mode there. It's a real word.. People describe it as being double-jointed, although that's just a slang term. It's still generally used though, and nobody really uses hypermobility in a conversation anyways."

"Ah, okay. Cool."

They went back to cooperatively dominating the battlefield with minimal casualties. It was only after a couple minutes that Sojiro realized he had been sidetracked out of his original goal.

 _"Oh well.. I can't really force her into anything, since doing something like that would sort of breach our unspoken rules. I trust her, she'll make the right choices."_ He sighed once more, but gave up on the matter. Well, maybe he didn't want to give up yet, but he would put the issue down and see how things went for now. After that, he devoted his full undivided attention to the video game, and suddenly his performance got that much better.

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Hiiragi Household, 9:20 AM_

Kagami woke up with her face planted in her pillow. She tried to blink a couple of times before she growled and- with quite a bit of effort- rolled over onto her back, leaving her arm dangling off the edge of the mattress. She unfurled her fingers, sensing her nails brush against the carpet.

Slowly but surely she shook off the allure of sleep and found the motivation to swing her legs out of bed. After a couple moments of stretching, yawning, and muttering about the cold, Kagami stood up and started about her room to carry out the morning routine she always did. Short to say, this was a morning like any other; there was nothing special nor exciting about it.

"No blue." The words slipped out, and Kagami didn't understand where they came from for a couple moments. Eventually, it dawned on her that her mind had automatically connected her girlfriend's distinguishing blue hair to her girlfriend's absence.  
".. Huh. Thinking about her so early in the morning.. No good, Kagami. No good." She chided herself with a smile, knowing that if she had the choice of whether or not to wake up with Konata in the same room, she would definitely take it.  
"No, enough _dere_ for now.. It's too early." Kagami mumbled to herself again, looking for and finding the brush she used every morning.

She smacked herself in the head a couple seconds later. Maybe she needed to have Konata around when she woke up, if only to keep her own idiocy at bay. It was almost disturbing.

A couple minutes later, the door to her room opened and Kagami stepped out. The house was still dim, as none of the faint morning light could reach into the window and to every corner of the building. Quietly, as if she wasn't supposed to be outside, she closed the door behind her as she exited the room. She couldn't place why, but it felt almost wrong to disturb this tranquil environment created by the rain and the morning mist.

Starting down the carpeted hall, Kagami's eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, although every step she took seemed to let a little more light into the world. Her ears picked up some audio coming from the central area of the house, which was most likely the members of the family who were already awake.

Kagami walked into the living room of her house, and she was greeted with an enticing aroma and the sounds of life.

"Good morning, Kagami. Food is on the table, so go ahead and join your sisters." Her mother greeted her with a warm smile. Miki nodded her head in the direction of breakfast.

"Morning, Kagami." Inori flashed her a quick smile. Matsuri was poking disinterestedly at a bowl of rice in front of her. She only noticed Kagami's presence through her sister's greeting.

"Hmm.. G'mornin'." Matsuri yawned and greeted her sister heavily.

"You two are wide awake as usual," Kagami remarked with a smirk. She took her seat at the table opposite of her two sisters.

"Slept late. Studying." Matsuri grunted in as few words as possible. Inori shot her a sideways look before mischievously leaning closer and raising an eyebrow.

"Studying, huh? Are you sure you didn't mean watching TV and texting your friends?"

"Tch. I study all the time, I just wanted to relax for once!" The orange-haired girl whined and let her head loll backwards.

"Sounds like you two have been busy?" Kagami half-stated, half-asked. Her suspicions rang clear as Inori gave her a sheepish smile.

"Yeah.. You never really get breaks in college. You'll find out for yourself eventually.. Matsuri here learned the hard way that there are a lot of things that we have to do on our own, mostly because she has a lot of teachers who believe in self-studying."

"It's not fa-a-air!" Matsuri suddenly snapped back to life and dramatically flung herself into Inori, clinging to her sister tightly.  
"You have all the nice people! All your teachers are goddesses, and I'm stuck with Yamamoto-sensei!"

"Hey, chill out Matsuri! It's not like she's the _absolute_ worst teacher on campus. She just.. expects a lot out of her students.."

"Inori, let's trade schedules for a day! We're in college, we can do that right?"

"It doesn't work that way."

"Please, I'll be so happy and I'll love you even more than I do already!"

"Matsuri, I said we can't! You'll just have to deal with it until its over! But don't worry, I can always help you out if you need it."

Kagami picked up her utensils and started to eat. Her sisters, after they had concluded their argument, did the same.

Miki, who had been observing from the other room, smiled at the sight of her daughters eating their meal. She would eat later, when her girls had all gone off to do their own things, so for now she was content with just watching. The fact that Kagami was in the mood to have a friendly, active conversation with her elder siblings was not lost on her mother. Miki giggled quietly when she imagined the not very rare event that her daughter would roll her eyes and ignore her sisters while she ate, then rushing her dishes to the sink to escape the room as soon as possible.

"My, they're so social this morning. I should go wake up Tsukasa, or she'll most likely sleep in until lunch time.. Hehe, I love all of my daughters.. There's so much diversity in this household." She hummed lightly to herself as she walked down the hallway.

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Takara Household, 10:00 AM_

A clear sound rang throughout the house, echoing down the halls, up the stairs and past the open bedroom door. Inside the room, a girl was sitting at a refined ebony desk with only a few items scattered on its surface: books, a computer, and an empty cup that previously contained something warm. Whether she heard the doorbell or not, she continued to scan the page without looking up; what seemed like a couple moments later, her hand reached out and slid a bookmark in between the pages of the book she was reading, then she closed it and added it the stack of books.

She stood up and her movements were with an air of grace that didn't compromise speed. Within a minute she was already out the door, slipping on a jacket. Instead of going directly towards the stairs at the end of the hallway, she moved diagonally across to another room with another open door. She peered in, and after a moment withdrew her head and quietly pulled the door closed.

"Mother is still sleeping.. I hope we don't disturb her." She smiled and descended the steps quickly, slipping on the sweater as she did so. The doorbell sounded again, and her pace sped up to get to the door faster.  
"Oh, I hope she hasn't been waiting outside too long.. Oh, I hope she has an umbrella!"

The large double door at the front of the house made an audible clack as it was unlocked, then one of the halves swung inwards. When it opened, Miyuki appeared in the entryway but didn't step outside just yet. As soon as she saw that her visitor was sheltered under the brim of blue and black umbrella, she forewent grabbing her own and ran out into the rain, leaving the door slightly ajar as she made her way down the gravelly path towards the iron gates.

"Miyuki-san! Good morning!" Having seen her coming through the metal bars, Konata called out a greeting and waved enthusiastically.

"Good morning, Konata." Miyuki returned the greeting with less enthusiasm but the same amount of cheer. When she reached the gate, she hastily opened the locking mechanism that prevented her friend from entering the grounds. As soon as the metal blockade slid open, Konata was instantaneously at her side, holding the umbrella high enough to shelter the both of them.

"You're gonna catch a cold if you run around like that. I was afraid you had forgotten me or something! It's been hours since I got here.." Konata exclaimed.

"Oh dear.. Hours?" Miyuki had a suspicion that her companion may have been exaggerating the period of time she had waited outside, but a tiny pang of guilt tugged at her heart nonetheless.  
"I apologize, I thought I only took a moment to find a good place to stop reading.."

"Don't worry, people love girls who lose track of time! I've only been out here a couple minutes anyways, so it's fine. It is sort of cold though." Konata crossed her arms without letting the umbrella tilt sideways and tensed her body to make it look like she was shivering.

"Please come in. My mother is asleep in her room upstairs, but she's not a sensitive sleeper so don't worry about having to tread lightly. The kitchen's utilities are all yours, and feel free to turn on the television or read some of the things we have lying around. I'm afraid that our living room is a bit of a mess right now.. Mother and I have a bad habit of leaving our books lying around." Miyuki informed her blue-haired friend as they followed the pathway that led to the house.

"Okay. Thanks." Unfazed by the long-winded explanation, Konata just smiled and followed Miyuki into the house. Once inside, Konata's umbrella closed with a snap, showering drops around the door mat.

"I'm sorry to make you do this for us, Konata.." Miyuki started to apologize, but she trailed off as Konata gave her a piercing look. She propped her umbrella and bag against the wall, where a puddle started to form underneath them.

"Hey, stop apologizing! I invited myself over. You've got nothing to be sorry for!"

"I know Konata, and I already asked you that-" Miyuki started to defend herself, but Konata cut her off verbally this time.

"I shouldn't do anything in return, for you spending almost seventy thousand yen for my sake?" Konata countered, but smiled to show that there was nothing meant by the statement.  
"Miyuki, you would do something kind for me and probably any other person- whether they're a close friend or even a stranger- and not ask anything in return. To be honest, I think you're a bit too forthwith about helping other people."

Konata didn't look directly at her, but Miyuki had a side view of Konata's face as they were walking alongside each other. The bluenette didn't look annoyed or bothered- no surprise there- but Miyuki could see from the thoughtfulness etched onto her almost pale features that there was more to Konata's praise that met the eye.

"I'm truthfully honored that you can think of me like that, Konata. I've never really tried to influence my reputation to others, nor have I even thought about who I am to the people around me. My mother says that my willingness to help others for no cost is one of the things that defines me from her. She always tells me that.. that I have such a kind soul, compared to her own and the rest of the world."

"She's right you know." Miyuki saw Konata turn her head in her peripheral vision, and the pink-haired girl glanced at her and found herself gazing into her companion's unusually green eyes. She wasn't an expert on reading other people, but it was hard to miss the honesty in Konata's eyes.

"I.. Thank you, Konata. That makes me happy."

"Mhmm. I'm gonna start on breakfast.. lunch? Meh.. brunch it is, then!" Konata's eyes lit up as she started to brainstorm what she would cook. Her voice fell to inaudible mumbling as she looked through a mental folder of a recipes.

"Should I go wake up Mother?"

"Eh.. nah, let her sleep. I'll tell you when it's ready, so your mom can wake up to a warm meal. Give me like.. half an hour, no more than forty minutes!"

"Oh, that's very thoughtful of you Konata. Thank you! If you need anything, I'll be sitting in the living room."

"Miyuki, go dry off. You're still dripping from sprinting into the rain to save me!"

".. I almost forgot about that. I'll be a moment."

 _ **Line Break**_

Konata looked down at the product of her efforts: a traditional enough Japanese meal, complete with two rolls of sushi- cucumber and smoked salmon- along with _miso_ soup, a lightly-dressed salad, and golden-brown (orange, almost) filets of freshwater eel, simmered to fragrant perfection.

"It's pretty good. Now, to make it look like it.." She dried off her hands with a towel, already reaching towards the cabinet where she knew all the dishes were kept. Several trips later, the table was set to accompany three people. The sushi had been cut into neat pieces; the soup and salad had been doled out into six bowls, two for each person; and a serving of _unagi_ was laid out on a plate, to be the main course and eye-catcher. A supplementary bowl of rice was put to the side of each place.

Leaving the extra food out in the kitchen, Konata rinsed her hands even though she hadn't touched anything that would've contracted bacteria, because she herself had washed the dishes herself, and they had been scrutinized post-wash and prior to usage.

Going towards the living room to fetch her hosts, the size of the house compared to her own gave her a start.

"Now that I think about it.. The living room in our house is practically where we eat.. and Kagami's house works the same way.."

She found herself in the living room, right behind the cushioned sofa where a certain girl with pink-hair sat. After a split-second a satisfied smirk made its way onto Konata's lips. A couple moments later, she crossed her arms and folded them on top of Miyuki's head and silently cleared her throat.

"Good morning, Miyuki dear!" A near flawless impersonation of Yukari Takara. Konata quickly swallowed and wet her lips, her voice having cracked near the end. Hopefully it wasn't noticeable.

"H.. Mother, good morning! You surprised me.. I was just reading this book about western culture. It's quite interesting, although most of it I've already seen elsewhere." Miyuki attempted to turn around, but the arms forming a crown around her head prevented her from doing so.

"Oh, is that so? Well, come eat breakfast, Miyuki! Konata has it all set out for us, the little angel." Smiling at the innocuous self-praise, _Yukari_ giggled softly.

"Yes, Mother. We're going to have to get used to not having her around, though.. After all, she won't be here every day to cook for us."

"Yeah, well, if you really wanted me to I could do that." When she spoke, Konata had transitioned effortlessly and the voice used was her own once again.  
"Maybe not every day though, I still have to make time for my Kagamin, and my dad, and Kuroi-sensei, and for Yu-chan.."

Startled by the sudden change, Miyuki let out a gasp and her posture stiffened, all while fumbling the book in her hands and the words in her mouth. Eventually, she got herself under control and Konata allowed her to turn around.

"K-Konata.. That was you?"

" _Hai_ , Yuki-chan! Food is ready!" The bluenette announced cheerfully and with a wide, innocent smile. Miyuki stared at her for a second or two, and her face cycled through shock, then confusion, and finally amusement.

"Konata.. I can't believe it, you're an excellent mimic! Hehe, you sounded exactly like my mother! Her voice, her tone, even what she would most likely say herself!" She giggled unstably, like she was just barely unable to hold in her laughter.

"All it takes is practice, and hanging around long enough! I'm proud to call myself a brilliant all-around actor!"

Konata patted her on the head gently, like she was some sort of soft, fluffy pet. Her footsteps signaled her departure to go and wake up Yukari.

Miyuki turned to watch her go, waiting until Konata's blue hair was out of sight. Once the other girl had turned the corner, she sighed in relief. Then, she smiled.

 _"No such thing as a dull day with Konata, is there?"_

 _ **Line Break**_

Shortly after she had disappeared to go and wake up the older Takara, Konata joined her friend at at the table with her trademark grin.

"Hey, Miyuki! Your mom says strange things in her sleep. She called me some name I've never heard before."

"Oh.. haha, that's quite embarrassing but I can't deny it. Mother has a tendency to talk in her sleep, especially when she's having a dream. From time to time, she'll address me as if I was one of her college friends. Once, she even thought I was Father, although it's been nearly.. ten years, now? I believe so, yes, about a decade.."

"Ten years since.. what? Did your dad move to somewhere he can't visit, or did he pass away?"

"Both, actually.. When I was around seven years old, he had to relocate for business. I remember him boarding the plane and waving through the window to Mother and I, and before that he had told us he would be back before I got married. It was the last time that we would ever see him, and I can recall it as clear as day." Smiling at the thought, Miyuki's face bore a reminiscing look as she replayed the event in her mind. Although she wore a pleasant expression, there was a tinge of sadness mixed in as well.  
"At least once a month, he would send us letters and postcards, as well as a cut from his paycheck to support us. After a year had passed, he told us that he would be coming back to visit soon. Unfortunately, he stopped contacting us shortly after, and we couldn't get ahold of him through telephone or letter. Within the next couple of days, we received a call from his employer saying that he was killed in an accident. He didn't specify about what had happened, but it seems he was telling the truth."

"Oh.. how terrible.." Konata muttered, averting her eyes out of respect.  
"I'm.. really sorry about that."

"Thank you, but there's no need. We've gotten over it now, and although we struggled to get used to a more financially-reserved lifestyle, my mother and I have gotten the hang of it. She works, and I'm planning to get a scholarship and maybe a job after graduation."

"That's great!" Konata looked up, and to her surprise there was not a hint of sadness in Miyuki's expression.

"Excuse me for changing the subject so quickly, but I'm curious as to what you're planning to do after graduation. Will you be attending a college or university?"

"Uh.. haha.. actually, I haven't thought about that." Konata laughed nervously. She trailed off as Miyuki gave her a stare that wasn't exactly disappointment, but it was getting pretty darn close.

At that moment, Konata was saved from Miyuki's baleful eyes by the arrival of the person they had been waiting for. She turned around instinctively as she heard someone approaching from down the hallway.

"Good morning, girls! Sorry for making you two wait." Yukari apologized with a sincere smile and a sheepish giggle.  
"It sure is serious today, isn't it? The rain has that effect on people, I understand completely."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **For the devoted readers who have been following my story for a while, I want to tell you two things. Thank you for staying with me for this long, because living both my own life and my characters' lives is such a dreary task at times, but you guys have been here the entire time!**

 **Second, I'm sorry that updates have slowed down. The last update was on the fifth, and today is the first of the month after. That's almost a month without a new chapter- I know, I know, I'm ashamed. But I'll still defend myself! The reason I can't write as much is because of homework, martial arts classes, video games, anime, and watching Youtube videos. I don't care if it makes me look even worse, it's all I've been doing recently.**

 **And if you aren't following this story but you're reading this 18th chapter, please consider doing so! I mean, only if you're enjoying it, but why else would you read up to here if you don't enjoy the story?**

 **I can't promise consistent updates or even updates at all, but please note that I am still alive and I'm not going to die for hopefully a long time. I receive notifications for follows, favorites, reviews, and messages. Even if I haven't been active for several months, I'll still get respond to all my reviews and messages, and I might even be incensed to continue writing!**

 **Not that I'm planning on being inactive for three months. For now, I'm still a writer!**

 **If you happen to care, I've been watching The Anime Man play Sound of Drop - fall into poison - and I have to say that it is.. strangely interesting. He's also playing To The Moon, which I highly recommend because even though this is the third playthrough I'm watching, I would still buy the game and play it for myself!**

 **Anyways, not much else to saaaay.. I hope I haven't left anything out, but-**

 **[Edit: I did leave something out! Check out my other story, Lucky Star: Left Behind! I'm proud of it and think it'll be one of my best so far, it's centered around Konata and her feelings, and it's very different from this one! Thanks!]**

 **\- if I have then you guys should catch that for me! If you want updates on this story or on other stories I'm working on, follow this story or myself! If you love my story or me in general, favorite this story or myself! If you have feedback and suggestions for this story or questions and things to talk to me about, review this story or private message me! Au revoir!**

Sym: It's been a while, hasn't it? Twenty five days have passed since the last update!

Konata: It's a far shot from what the story used to be.. How was it like in the beginning? I sort of remember like, a couple chapters being posted in just one weekend or something.

Miyuki: I can't say I know for sure, but I would agree with you. Updates have gotten slower over time.

Sym: Hey, things happen. I'm sure the author has their reasons. Speaking of which, let's move onto today's topic! It's December, and we all know what that means.

Konata: Actually, it's January.

Sym: Ah, well it's December for us. We're about a month behind you, now!

Miyuki: Time certainly does work in an odd fashion around here..

Sym: Yes, it does. Not sure why, but I'm going to blame lag. Anyways, did you two enjoy the holidays?

Konata: I did! We just spent like, four chapters chronicling how awesome the last two weeks of the year were. Even my sister is getting hooked up!

Miyuki: Yes, this was a good year all in all! It ended quite wonderfully too. I didn't spend my Christmas with anyone in particular, but friends and family were all around.

Sym: Western traditions are a lot different than Japanese traditions. I know for one, Christmas isn't really as focused on romance as it is in Japan, and there's not even a tradition for New Year's. We just do whatever- I've seen people celebrate with college parties and romantic dates and nights out on the town, all of that.

Konata: To be honest, I've always been sort of interested in the way things work over there. I was even thinking about flying there for a year or so, just to see how much I like their ways of celebration.

Miyuki: You might not have to fly over there.. I could study up on it and try to-

Konata: No, it's fine. I like Japan better anyways.

Sym: This seems like a great place to end it! Thanks for joining me here today, you two. With that, we'll see you in the next chapter! Look forward to it!


	19. Chapter 19: Dream of the Future

_January 4_

 _Ry_ _ōō_ _High School, 8:29 AM_

Nanako looked up from her registration book, scanning the room.

"Izumi should be showing up right about now," she said, loud enough for most of her students to hear. She looked expectantly towards the door. At this point, after three years, she could recreate Konata's figure in the entrance of her classroom almost perfectly. She could imagine the door sliding open just short of hitting the wall; she could imagine the short, blue-haired girl standing in the entryway with her dramatic pose and her customary "I'm not late!"

A considerable amount of time had passed since Nanako had spoken, and a couple of the students were now exchanging looks and whispering. She herself was a bit confused as to why the most well-known student of their class wasn't present yet.

"Hm.. that's odd," Nanako frowned. Give her a couple more minutes. Izumi was never late- or at least, she had never been late before.

"Hey, what if she actually is late? Is that like, an omen?" Some random student called out. Nanako turned in the general direction the voice had come from, and she spoke so that her voice would rise above the murmurs of the class.

"Order in the classroom!" She sent a withering gaze over the heads of the louder people. "If she's late, she gets marked for it. Nothing special. What you lot should be worried about is the fact that even if she is late today, Izumi still has better attendance marks than some of you."

While it was definitely targeting a niche group, the veiled threat hit home. Of all people, it was Konata Izumi that had one of the few perfect attendance records in the class- whether or not she could be really be considered _on time_.. well, that was a moot point.

The bell rang, and there still wasn't any sign of her. Nanako sighed.

"Looks like Izumi is late today.. There goes her reputation."

The sound of the bell faded, leaving only the chatter of the students. Nanako heard Konata's name being whispered here and there. Just as she was about to raise her voice to silence the crowd, the door was flung open.

"Hey! I'm late!" Konata announced, bounding into the classroom with a determined look on her face. Nanako gave her an inquisitive look.

"Yes, you are. Maybe if you had been ten seconds earlier, I wouldn't have had to end your flawless attendance streak," she chuckled.

"What?! No, Teach, you wouldn't!" Konata recoiled in shock, taking a step back and holding a hand to her mouth. "What will get you to change your mind? Knowledge? Gold? Maybe my own self bound by steel to your will?"

"Gimme a good excuse and choice item drops from your next raid, and maybe I'll let this one slide!" Nanako grinned at the horrified expression her pupil wore.

"That's just cruel, Kuroi-sensei. I just woke up late, and I had to gather my things-"

"Denied. I'd believe you if you said you stayed up until morning and didn't realize you had school, but oversleeping?" Nanako snorted, covering her hand with her mouth. "You expect me to believe that? I wake up on weekends and log in to find you still online. I should mark you late just for trying to pull that one over me."

"What?!"

"Chill, I'm kidding. I didn't know you cared that much about this, Izumi. If I did, I'd have taken advantage of this a long time ago!"

Konata puffed out her cheeks then stalked to her seat, causing an outburst of laughter and muffled giggling from the class. She dropped her bag onto the floor, sliding it underneath her desk with her foot.

"Teach, you are the devil's incarnation. I salute you for that!" Konata didn't sit down, but literally saluted, placing her right hand over her heart and her left behind her back.

"Take your seat, Sasha."

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Ry_ _ōō_ _High School, 3:30 PM_

The sound of the bell pierced Konata's ears, jolting her into wakefulness. While she was in fact awake, her eyes were still shut and she definitely didn't feel awake.

Konata scrunched her shoulders up past her neck in an attempt to shut out the noise that was invading her head- but no matter how small she made herself, she could still hear everything. The noises and voices entering her head were gradually wearing down the state of sleep she had spent most of the last period in.

"Hey.. Kona-chan?" After standing next to Konata's desk for almost half a minute with no reaction, Tsukasa tapped her friend on the arm and murmured her name. "Kona-chan.. Kona-chan. School is over. Are you tired?"

"Nn.. hm.." Konata shifted a little bit, but otherwise didn't react. Tsukasa thought she saw Konata shake her head, but she couldn't be sure.

"Kona-chan, let's go home. You can sleep when you get to your house, right?" Tsukasa put a hand on Konata's shoulder and shook her gently.

Still, Konata ignored her and definitely shook her head this time. The strand of hair atop her head swayed along with the motion, like it was mimicking its owner.

Tsukasa was about to try to wake her up again, but at that precise moment someone made their presence known.

"What's holding you guys up?" Someone called out from across the classroom, stepping to the side to allow a couple students to get past.

"Oh, sis.. Kona-chan is asleep, and she won't get up." Tsukasa explained to Kagami, her relief at handing over the situation showing on her face.

"Huh. Am I supposed to wake her up?" Kagami muttered, mostly to herself, as she approached Konata's desk. She sighed and placed a hand on top of Konata's head. "Konata? Are you actually asleep, or are you just tired?"

"Uh.. Kagamin?" Konata mumbled while sleepily moving her head, maybe trying to get rid of the hand holding it down.

"Yeah, it's me." Kagami paused for a moment.  
"So.. I'm not going to wait around all day for you, you're going to have to wake up."

"Yeah.. Gimme a moment," she sighed. Konata willed herself to lift her head from her makeshift pillow. Her green eyes blinked to clear away the blurriness that always followed sleeping on one's arms. "Sorry."

Kagami, Tsukasa, and Miyuki (yes, she was there too) waited as Konata tediously packed her belongings into the bag at her feet. If it weren't for her listless expression, it would have seemed like she was deliberately moving slowly.

It took a while, but eventually the girl was on her feet and ready to leave. Nobody said anything, but there was no need to. Miyuki smiled and Tsukasa smiled, and Kagami nodded and placed a hand on Konata's shoulder, leading her towards the door.

"Hey. Izumi," someone said from the front of the class. Konata stopped, forcing Kagami to do the same lest she bump into the smaller girl.

"Yeah.. what's up?" Konata directed her attention to the speaker. Although her teacher was kicked back in her chair like she normally was, something about the tone of voice she used was unusual. Maybe the right word to describe it was "serious".

"Have you been sleeping well?" Nanako inquired. She dropped her shoes off of the desk, leaning forwards over the surface of the table to look pointedly at her student.

"Well.. you know me, teach," Konata said evasively. "My sleeping habits aren't the best in the world, but they work!"

"Sure as hell they work, Izumi," the older woman frowned, her eyebrows coming together. She sighed and said something indistinct. Although it had never bothered her before, Konata felt a pang of guilt at the disapproval.

"..." There was no point in continuing to look directly at her teacher, because Nanako had already turned away and focused back in on her computer.

"I don't want to see you online for a while." Nanako didn't look up.

"Uh.. huh?" Konata stared at her.

"Stay away from the games until you aren't sleep deprived," she repeated. It took a couple seconds for the order to sink in, and then Nanako cut her pupil off right before the foreseen complaint. "Don't argue with me! As an adult, I know what's best for you- especially since I've been down that same path when I was younger. Give it a break, Izumi. It won't kill you to lose your daily login rewards for the sake of being tired all day."

"But.." Being a gamer, Konata felt hesitant to let go of her hobby just so that she could get some more sleep. It had never been bad for her before.. so where was the harm in it?

"If you're really that desperate for the end-of-the-week bonus, just get your dad to do it or something," Nanako added sympathetically. Then, her eyes lit up and she posted her hands on the desk and grinned. "Or, you could tell me your account information and I can play for y-"

"Not happening, Kuroi-sensei."

"It was worth a try."

"It wasn't."

Nanako smiled, then chuckled, then started to laugh to herself. While she wasn't rolling on the floor, her demeanor was far from its previous seriousness.

"Oh, alright. Get out of here, you four. Just remember what I said Izumi- if I catch you playing, then all I can say is you better not be in a PvP area."

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Hiiragi Household, 3:55 PM_

"Oh, thanks," Konata nodded her appreciation as a plate of assorted sweets was set down in the center of the table; she wasted no time in taking one and bringing it to her mouth.

"Mm hmm. Make sure you drink water when you're done eating, these are probably bad for your teeth." Kagami set a glass of water down on the table.

"Eh? Since when were you my mom?" Her visitor protested.

"I don't have to be your mom to take care of you."

Konata didn't have an immediate response to that.

"You have a point, but it's fine. I'm healthy when it comes to this kind of stuff!" Konata proclaimed, although she was met with an amused _as if_ reaction.

"You, healthy? You eat a pastry for lunch and you're prone to skipping breakfast and or dinner. Don't make me laugh."

"Tch.. better to eat less than to overeat. At least I won't be chubby the same way you are."

"Hey, you know fully well that I'm not _chubby_!"

"Yeah, I know that a _lot_ better than most people.. heh."

Kagami glared at her friend before turning away, masking her lack of an excuse as annoyance.

"Yeah, yeah."

Following that exchange, it was quiet for a couple minutes. The two girls were facing each other over the low table in Kagami's room. Books and sheets of paper were scattered in front of each of them. Kagami was dedicated to her work, steadily completing her homework assignments, and Konata was doing the same. (At least, that's how she appeared at first glance. There was a manga on her lap, and the DS that was on the carpet hidden between her legs was closed- but the green light was blinking.)

After a couple minutes, Kagami's eyes went back up to the top of her paper, then scanned downwards from there. Happy with the results, she set it at on a neat, short stack of papers.

"There. I'm finished with my homework already."

".. What, bragging? I'm sorry that I'm only almost done."

Konata pushed out her lower lip, frowning at the incomplete paper in front of her. She slowly picked up the pencil that was lying on the table, as if doing so without speed would make it any less noticeable. While she did notice, Kagami decided not to comment on it.

"I'm not bragging, I'm just making sure you know."

"It's more or less the same thing."

Repressing a sigh, the lilac-haired girl peered across the table.

"But this stuff is easy, and it's not like you can't tell me you aren't considerable above average. I know that you can be smart when you try!"

"Well, I don't really feel like doing homework right now, so.."

This time, Kagami didn't hold back a sigh.

"Come on, Konata. Once you're done, we can hang out. It's not like there's any reason to drag this on for long."

"I know, I know.."

Silence again. The only sound in the room was the scratching of a pencil on paper. Having done all of her assigned homework, Kagami was now left with nothing to do. The analog clock hung on her wall told her it was only four o' clock. Plenty of time for either doing nothing or doing something. Might as well be productive.

Kagami rose from her sitting position and walked over to her bedside table, eyes set on the pile of books that she had left there last night. They were novels from a series that she had recently discovered, and it had her hooked from the very start. Although she had started only a few days ago, she was already well into the third book. In her possession, she currently had every volume: all six. It was a double-bladed knife that it was one of the more obscure releases of the season; although she thought it deserved much more of a fanbase than it had currently, the lack of attention increased the books' availability.

She returned to her seat at the table with her light novel in hand. Before she let herself be absorbed in her book, she glanced at Konata.

The otaku was practically falling asleep, and she wasn't even trying to keep up the premise of doing her homework at this point. When her eyes weren't closed, they were were unfocused. She was staring at the paper in front of her, maybe trying her best, but she couldn't keep it up for more than a couple seconds at a time.

As much as she wanted to delve into the fictional world she held in her hands, Kagami forgot about it at the sight of her rather disheveled girlfriend. She put her book off to the side for now.

"Hey, Konata," she said, quietly but loud enough that Konata should have been able to hear it. Experience was what helped her determine the correct volume; countless comments she's made under her breath, along with whether or not Konata was able to pick up on them, were the trial and error that let her figure this out.

There was no reaction from Konata. Even if she was awake, she hadn't heard.

"Seriously.. you're supposed to be doing your homework, but now you're just napping," Kagami sighed. "Guess it can't be helped.. at least, not with your sleeping habits.."

She got up again, this time walking around the table. While she might've shook Konata awake any other day, today was different because of the whole incident at school.

"I guess she didn't really take anything away from what happened last time.." Kagami muttered, remembering what had happened previously when Konata had been caught putting her body at risk.

 _"Konata, we need to have a talk," she said._

 _"Yeah, I know," Konata sighed._

 _"Why haven't you been eating right?" Tsukasa nearly demanded. She was obviously trying her best to look stern- her face was marked with determination and austerity._

 _"Guys, it's fine. Really, I-"_

 _"No, it's not," Kagami stopped her._

 _"Kona-chan, we just want to help you," Tsukasa continued. The firmness was gone from her face, leaving one of sympathy and concern._

 _Konata looked between the two faces of her friends. Her mouth opened, then closed, then opened again. "Okay.. okay, I get it.." She took a sudden interest in the armrest of her seat._

 _"You should take better care of yourself. We've talked about this before, and there's no point in not doing so," Kagami said._

 _The blue-haired girl said nothing for a while. Kagami took that as a cue to keep going, but Konata spoke up at the last second._

 _"I'm sorry," she turned and met her friends' eyes with a smile. "I'll take better care of myself."_

Her flashback ended when she remembered where she was. Kagami blinked and let her eyes regain focus before looking down at the girl sleeping with her head in her arms.

"Sheesh.. you're such a troublemaker.." The lavender-haired girl sighed.

She dropped to one knee and scooted a bit closer. It took some effort and a little bit of thinking, but she managed to pick the girl up without fully waking her up. With a grunt, she stood up with Konata in her arms.

Walking over to her bed, Kagami laid her girlfriend down on the mattress. She shifted some of the blankets, trying to make it more comfortable, but Konata started to stir as she did so. "Mm.. Kagami?"

"Wow.. of course now you're awake. Just when I'm helping you sleep." Kagami clicked her tongue and put a hand on her head. Even though she had reasons to be, she didn't really feel all that annoyed.

"Oh.. my homework.." Konata propped herself up on one elbow. "I should finish.."

"Since when did you prioritize homework over sleeping?" Kagami raised an eyebrow. "Don't bother, it'll turn out terribly with how you are right now."

The otaku sat up, but she didn't attempt to get off the bed. "But.."

"No buts, just lay down. You definitely aren't yourself if you actually _want_ to do homework," Kagami smiled.

Konata pouted, but she gave in and returned to her lying-down position. Kagami watched her, noticing the regular rise and fall of her chest with her breathing.

"Hey, Kagami.. I'm awake now." Konata turning onto her side to face the lavender-haired girl.

"That's alright.. I guess. I wanted to talk to you anyways," Kagami said. There was no response, so she continued.  
"I want you to get serious about your life."

Konata gaped at her for a couple moments. "Uh.. what do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Go to sleep on time, eat healthier meals, actually _do_ your homework.. that sort of thing."

"Eh?! But why? It's not like my grades are going down or I'm out of shape!" Konata stared at Kagami with a bewildered expression.

"You may think it's perfectly okay, but it's not!" Kagami frowned. "Once you graduate, what are you going to do in college? It's not like you're going to be able to copy off of me for everything! Do you-"

"Not planning to.." The blue-haired girl mumbled. Kagami saw her lips move and quieted down just in time to hear the next part of what Konata said:  
"I'm not going to college."

Her mind came to a complete stop as she heard the words. With a jolt, it pulled itself together and started to work again, and it went without saying that Kagami was shocked.

"What?! Why not?"

"There's no point," said Konata. The girl rolled onto her back to face the ceiling.  
"I thought you knew that I wasn't the type of person to be interested in college. I mean, I didn't even want to go to high school until my dad got me to enroll. What's the point of going to college if I have no motivation to study? On top of that, I don't even have a goal that I want to work for. It would all be for nothing."

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Kagami realized there was no need for an immediate reply. Conversely, each second without words only built upon the heavy atmosphere in the room.

For the sake of breaking the silence- and to force herself to come up with something- she opened her mouth. "Konata.." She paused.  
"Do you realize what you're setting yourself up for? If you choose not to go to college, you'll be graduating high school with absolutely nothing in mind."

Kagami couldn't tell if it was just a respectful gesture or if her words were having an effect on her friend, but Konata sat up and faced her, making eye contact.

"What else would you do? If you end your academic career after graduating, what other options do you have?" Kagami asked. She looked directly at Konata, letting her know that an answer was mandatory.

"I.. I could get a job, and work full-time.." Konata suggested, looking down and playing with her fingers.

"See? Even you don't sound sure about that. Plus, you might not even be able to find a job. Most of the good jobs will require you to have a resumé and a college degree! What would you do then?" Kagami pressed, hoping that by having Konata answer the questions herself it would snap some sense into her.

Strands of blue hair found their way to Konata's hands. She played with her hair, rubbing it gently as she stared at her lap. "Um.. I.. don't know," she gave up. "I could stay with my dad."

"Is that really what you want?" Kagami persisted. She could tell that Konata was starting to lean towards her way of thinking, and all she needed was a little desperation.

"No.. he would be disappointed if I ended up that way," mumbled Konata.

"See? You don't want that," Kagami nodded. At that moment, her mind went blank and she had no idea how to follow up on her argument.

She was about to be blunt about it, but Konata was apparently thinking along the same lines as her. "Can I go with you? To college?"

Kagami looked at Konata and met her eyes. "Yeah. You can."

"Really? You're not, like.. annoyed, that I'm following you, or anything?" She looked away and her eyes found an interesting spot on the bed.

"You're my best friend, and my girlfriend," smiled Kagami.  
"How could I be annoyed?"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **As the Japanese would say it.. Sumimasen! *sharks politely***

 **No big surprise here, but there's been a long time without any update. I really wanted to get this chapter out before Christmas, but I have been busy with the holidays and-**

 **Yeah, I won't lie to you guys. I'm lazy, and I've been having a tough time writing out scenes for this story.**

 **I won't go on and on in this author's note, but basically I've been feeling really distracted when it comes to writing lately. I've been finding it harder to write actual content for my stories and easier to derail and watch anime or play games or review anime or chat, and it's just bothering me that I've lost the level of devotion I had before.**

 **This story is going to be wrapping up soon. Originally I planned to have this one as an ongoing series, one that doesn't really end for real, but I changed my mind. I might have another story for that, but this isn't going to be it. With high school coming to an end for the cast, I think the story will have to come to an end as well. But do not fret, I might write a sequel. Just to break it up so I can look at this story with refreshed eyes!**

 **Not sure what else to say. If you have input about the story, please leave a review. If you have questions or comments unrelated to the story, please private message me about it. If you enjoyed, favorite; if you want to get updates when I post new chapters, follow.**

 **That's all for today! Hopefully I didn't sound too dreary, that's not the vibe I want to give. I'm not losing interest completely, I just need some time to recoup.**

Sym: I have to say, that was probably the most depressing note we've had so far..

Sojiro: Life has its ups and downs. To take one away would be to take away balance. Well, to quote something I've read somewhere, that is.

Sym: Yes, yes.. It appears we're going through somewhat of a rough patch right now. Hopefully, the author can get it together and find a means to an end.. Actually, he's already got an idea for what comes next. I think we can rest easy, everybody.. It appears that everything will be okay.

Newcomer: I'm grateful for that. It makes me happy to know that your futures are bright.

Sojiro: *shocked* .. Is that.. you.. you're..

Newcomer: It's me.. Sou-kun.

Sojiro: .. Kanata? I.. I can't believe it.. you're here..!

Kanata: Yes, I am. Somehow, Sym managed to contact me and allow me to visit this area. He told me that you would be here, and.. I can't say you've changed, my dear!

Sojiro: You're exactly as I remember you.. I guess spirits don't age after all, huh?

Kanata: We have some time to talk about our lives later, but for now.. tell me. How is my daughter? Is she well? She's about to graduate high school, right?

Sojiro: I haven't seen a lot of Konata recently. She's starting to grow up, and.. to be honest, I'm sort of lonely.

Kanata: Hehe.. you really haven't changed, Sou-kun.

Sojiro: But, nonetheless I'm proud of her. As her father, it's plain to see that she's starting to grow up. Her life is going to change in a pretty drastic way soon, and it'll take a lot of work for her to get by, but she's got amazing people to help her out. She has her loved ones all around. Kagami.. myself, if I may add.. but you've probably been watching over her the entire time. You're the person in her life who's been with her both the least and the most.

Kanata: .. I like that. I've been with her the least, and the most. Yeah.. you're right, Sou-kun.

Sojiro: I think.. one more chapter. There's one last, final chapter awaiting for this story. Kanata, I know you're already planning to do so, but.. please make sure that you watch over her closely from now on. It feels like we're all connected through Konata, and please never lose that connection.

Kanata: I will never lose sight of her. My family means the world to me- that includes Konata, you, and even her friends. Even if you don't realize it, I'm here.

Sojiro: Thank you, Kanata. We might be talking about it pretty philosophically right now, but you know.. let's enjoy this final chapter. It may be the end of this part of our lives, but it's the beginning of the next.


	20. Chapter 20: The Fifth Arc

_March 4_

 _Ryōō_ _High School, 9:30 AM_

Kagami stopped in front of the gates to her school, ignoring the people walking past and instead focusing only on the four-story tall building.

 _"I've spent three years at this school, but I'm already starting to miss it.."_ She took in the smooth gray walls and the narrow windows. Her gaze didn't miss the grounds in front of the school; she watched the cherry blossoms float free of the trees, blanketing the sidewalk with pink dots.

A presence by her side snapped her out of the trance the scene had put her into. She looked at the person who was standing there with her, and smiled.

"Konata," she said. "This is the last time we'll be coming here as students."

"It feels different, doesn't it?" Konata glanced at her.

"When we walk off the grounds today, we'll be legal adults," said Kagami.

Her companion said nothing, but she didn't mind. It was one of those moments where words served no purpose. Anything that was important didn't need to be said.

Kagami was broken out of her thoughts by a tug on her arm. "Hey, Kagamin. It's weird if we just stand here, let's go."

"Oh, yeah.. wait, don't pull me like that!"

As Konata pulled Kagami towards the entrance of the school, two more people followed after them at a more reasonable pace. Tsukasa Hiiragi giggled at the sight of her older sister being dragged along by the shorter girl.

"They get along really well, right Yuki-chan?" She smiled at the person walking next to her.

"They're more compatible than anyone else I know," Miyuki told her. A smile formed on her lips as she looked back towards the school building.  
"We're graduating from high school today. This is the day that we take our first steps into our adult lives. Shall we?"

"Yeah! Let's go, Miyuki!"

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Ryōō_ _High School, 1:20 PM_

"Listen up, you previous third-year students! You're now officially young adults, free to do whatever you want in the world." Some of the students cheered at this. The blonde woman who was speaking waited for the cheering to die down before she continued.

"Congratulations on graduating! Let your parents know that without your wonderful teacher, you wouldn't be sitting here today. I prefer money and alcohol, but I'll accept any sort of gift you want to give me," she laughed off all the stunned looks she received. "In all seriousness, good job you guys. For the most part, you guys passed with pretty good grades. Some of you cut it a bit close, but nobody from our class actually failed this year. Isn't that great?"

Nanako didn't wait for an answer. "As you all know, graduating from high school is an important part in your life. Like I said before, you can do whatever you want whether it's in Japan or in another country. That includes committing crimes, getting drunk, and having access to adult-rated entertainment. Hopefully none of you are planning to do so, right Izumi?"

"Right, teach!" Konata grinned, not at all surprised or embarrassed to be put on the spot so suddenly.

"Right. In all seriousness, you guys better know where you're going from here," she tilted her head back and laughed again. "College, university, work, living in your parents' basement for the rest of your life. I won't judge your choices, so decide for yourself what you want to do. And one last thing.."

Her lighthearted demeanor vanished and her eyes narrowed into a glare that panned the classroom. "If any of you go and get engaged, **do not** ask me to come your weddings. I will start a fire just so I can burn the invitation." Some of the students' reactions including averting their eyes, nodding fearfully, and swallowing dryly. Konata was the only one who met her teacher's gaze with an audacious grin.

"Kuroi-sensei! Please come to my wedding!" She yelled out, putting her hand high in the air. Every pair of eyes in the classroom turned to her.

"I'll think about it," the teacher eventually said. Then all of a sudden she smiled, breaking the tension that her glare had formed.  
"Okay, you guys know what to do. You're free to find your friends, leave campus, whatever. Now, this is probably the last time you guys will hear this from me, so enjoy it or leave it:

"Class dismissed!" She announced, smiling at the momentous feel of the words as they left her mouth. The class reacted immediately; chairs scraped the floor and hands went up as students cheered over their freedom. Half of the classroom made a beeline for the door, while the rest met up with their friends and hugged and high fived and cheered some more.

Konata waited for a couple seconds to let a couple groups of people past her, then she stood up and made her way over to Tsukasa's desk, where two of her friends waited for her with expectant smiles.

"Group hug!" As soon as she was within range, she instantly latched onto Tsukasa and pulled her into Miyuki, then squeezed both of them in a nearly-suffocating embrace.

"H-hey, Kona-chan!" Tsukasa protested but she started to giggle as she returned the gesture.

Miyuki beamed, but her voice was as calm as it always was. "Let's not forget about Kagami-san.."

"Oh yeah, she's probably going to be here any second. I should tackle her as soon as she walks in!" With a sly grin on her face Konata let go of her friends and positioned herself at the door. After a couple seconds of waiting, the door slid open and in walked her target.

Konata lunged forwards with her arms outstretched, but she found herself being lifted up off the ground and squeezed tightly.

"Got you!" Kagami grinned, shifting Konata's body so that instead of having her in a bear hug, the _otaku_ was slung over her shoulder.

"Hey! Put me dooooown!" The smaller girl complained. "That's not fair, you can't do that!"

"Says who? Let's not forget who started it," Kagami chuckled. She walked over to where Tsukasa and Miyuki were watching the incident, setting her cargo down on top of a desk.

Konata huffed and crossed her arms. Her annoyance was all in good fun, and it only took a couple seconds for her to pick up her normal behavior once again.

"Hey guys!" The newcomer greeted her friends with a wave and a smile, like she always did. "Congratulations!"

They chatted idly about school and graduation, and how it felt no different than before. Not enough time had passed before the public announcement system sounded, alerting all the students that the school was closing soon.

"We'd better go. Are you guys planning anything? Maybe we can go out, or all meet up at one of our houses," Kagami suggested. It might have been the occasion, but she was more excited to hang out with her friends than she normally was.

"Ah! We should go eat at that cake restaurant! The one that we go to pretty much all the time!" Konata offered. She looked around her circle of friends and saw no resistance. "We could always do other things too, but I think we should eat together. To celebrate the event, and later we can all go to a bar and drink!"

"Maybe we should avoid the bar for now, but I think that's a good idea. Tsukasa-san, Kagami-san, what do you two think?" Miyuki was the first to speak, which was a somewhat uncommon thing in the group.

"I'm.. fine with everything except the bar," Tsukasa laughed nervously. Kagami nodded, a serious look on her face, and she gave her girlfriend a threatening stare. To avoid being on the receiving end for too long, Konata coughed and turned away.

"Ah, no objections? Let's go, then! Our first group date as non-minors awaits us!"

 _ **Line Break**_

 _Izumi Household, 11:50 PM_

"Good night, Konata!" Sojiro whispered, freeing a hand from the sleeves of his robe to wave at his daughter, who in return smiled and also held up a hand in farewell.

"Night, dad. See you tomorrow." Turning, Konata gripped the handrail and climbed the stairs leading to the second story.

Out of spontaneous curiosity, she approached a different room and opened the door as quietly as she manage. Peeking inside, she smiled at the sight of her cousin resting in the bed. _"Yutaka is already sleeping, huh?"_

Konata retreated back to her own room, where she closed the door and made directly for her bed. She let herself fall forwards onto her mattress with a relieved sigh.

"Ahh.. I'm exhausted. Celebrating is so tiring!" Her face stayed planted in her pillow for a couple moments but eventually she needed air.

Rolling onto her back, she put her hands behind her head and took a deep breath. With the exception of her own breathing, there wasn't a sound to disturb her.

Konata continued to stare at the ceiling for about a minute, at which point she began to feel restless.

"Grr.. I don't feel like doing anything, but at the same time I'm so bored!" She groaned. Even though her computer was the first thing that came to mind, she dismissed the idea. "Servers are under maintenance, and I don't feel like browsing the internet.."

She sighed out of frustration, then sat up and crossed her legs. Of all the ways she could've ended the day, she was sitting in her room without motivation to do anything.

"Come to think of it, Kagami is already packing her stuff.." Konata thought back to an off-handed statement that had been made earlier that day.

 _"Hey, Kagamin!" She turned to the person she was addressing._

 _"What's up Konata?" Kagami put her chopsticks down and wiped her mouth with a napkin._

 _"Wanna come over to my house today? My dad is making dinner and he wanted to know if you were gonna be there," Konata told her._

 _"Tonight.. Sorry, I can't," the purple-haired girl's face fell. "I have to pick out what I'm going to bring with me to college, and I then I have to help Tsukasa, and then there are things like shrine duties.."_

 _"Oh.. That's okay. We can- wait, already?!"_

 _"Well, yeah. I don't want to leave it until the last minute, then forget things. You know, you should start getting ready too. This is important, you know!"_

 _"Okay, okay.. I'll start thinking about it.."_

Konata blinked a couple times and shook her head as the memory ended. She looked around at her room, which was filled with all of her possessions. _All_ of her possessions.

"Wow.. I have a lot more stuff than I realized," she muttered as she scanned the room. Her eyes landed on several side-by-side stacks of manga and light novels that almost reached her own height. That collection was located right next to her bookshelf, which she used to store even more books and also her collection of figurines and everything else related to her favorite fandoms.

As she took in the contents of her room, her heart sank at the sight of her collection in all its glory: huge, comfortable, and somehow organized. _"There's no way I'll be able to take all of this with me."_

She had seen this coming, but the reality of it still hurt- a lot. It wasn't easy to come to terms with the idea of leaving behind the things that she had spent her whole life on. Konata looked down between her knees, hopelessly wondering if there was any alternative.

"I can take a couple things with me, right? I'll just choose what I want to bring.." She told herself. But immediately she knew it wouldn't help much; there were too many things she wanted to bring with her, and she knew that if she picked them out first then there probably wouldn't be space for the necessities. "Nn.. I guess I'll have dad help me out later."

She sighed again. It seemed hopeless- no, it was hopeless to keep this part of her lifestyle the same. There was no way in existence that would allow her to keep all of her possessions with her as she moved out.

The hopelessness gave way as she realized there was more to the situation than her belongings. When she moved to whatever dormitory or apartment she would live in for her college years, she would no longer have her family around to keep her company.

A tear formed in her eye, but she didn't even notice until it dropped onto the back of her hand.

Blinking in surprise, she wiped it away and shook her head. "No, I won't be alone. I'll have Kagami, and maybe Tsukasa, and maybe Miyuki. Even if they live far away, I can still keep in touch with them, and I can keep in touch with my dad and Yutaka and her friends too."

A lot of things were going to change. She had just realized it, but she knew it was a definite. Her life never really stayed the same for a long time, and it could even be divided into arcs: infancy, toddler, elementary and middle school, high school, and now college. She smiled at the thought of it. "I should be the main character in a slice of life or something like that."

Her life was definitely changing. High school was over, and college was coming up. She wasn't exactly sure how much was going to change, but there was one thing that was resolute.

"Well.. Time for me to get real. I'll have to put on my serious face."

 _End_

* * *

 **A/N**

I want to thank everybody who had reviewed, followed, favorited, or even just read this story. Every one of you means a lot to me, whether you read a couple chapters or the whole thing, whether you liked it or didn't like it. I'm grateful for everything, because as a writer I have a _lot_ of room to grow. All of the comments, compliments, and criticism help, no matter how short or how detailed.

Special thanks to Gigarot, who's been following my story for a while, and Redler Red7, who doesn't necessarily follow this story, gives me a lot of feedback on my other work. And thanks to every other reviewer, even though they aren't mentioned, has helped me grow in some way or another. That includes growing my ego.

There may be some issues with the site that have caused a couple reviews to go "missing." I couldn't find them anywhere, even though I got an email notification. Don't worry, I haven't ignored you two- I just couldn't reply. Thanks.

And guest reviewers, I guess I owe you guys some thanks. Excluding the guy who just wanted a lemon, I still read your reviews and think about them, even if it doesn't show.

All that aside, this story is over. Thank you for coming. But who knows.. Maybe it'll have a successor? If you're interested, make sure to follow me as an author. You'll know it when you see it.


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